Poison
by Riza Winters
Summary: Aizen's latest plan has left every soul reaper in a coma like state: that is all but Ichigo Kurosaki and a badly wounded Toshiro Hitsugaya. Ichigo must help Toshiro recover and both must find a way to stop Aizen and save their friends.
1. Chapter 1

The arrancar fell dead, the ice around its body shattering with its impact on earth. Toshiro Hitsugaya landed on earth, his face calm, staring at the disintegrating spiritual particles.

"Captain, your arm." His lieutenant rushed to his side. He looked down at the long gash that ran the length of his forearm.

"Its nothing. Are you alright?"

"Yes Captain."

The ice wings faded and he sheathed his sword.

"Are you sure you're okay Captain, you look very pale."

"Rangiku, I said I'm– "

Hitsugaya stopped talking, all colour from his face faded, and he swayed.

"Matsumoto..." Crimson spewed from his mouth and he reached out for her just as he fell. She caught him just in time, kneeling with him in her arms.

He looked up at her, terrified. "Ran–gi–" but he only coughed up more blood.

"Where are you hit?" she said, frantically pulling back his robes, and patting him down. But there was no wound to be found. She grabbed his arm and inspected the wound. It looked normal.

He was choking now, the torrent of blood coming up his throat was suffocating him. His small hand knotted in her robes, his eyes desperate.

Rankigu did not heistiate. She opened the senkeinmo and dove through, bearing her captain.

...

It took twelve hours to save Hitsugaya's life. Unohana emerged from the operating room, her robes stained with blood, her face covered in sweat but she took no time to recover, she knew the desperate lieutenant was waiting.

"Captain Unohana." Rangiku shot up, her eyes ringed red, every muscle in her body tense.

"He's recovering."

"What happened to him?"

"The arrancar injected him with some sort of poison. In simple terms, it was destroying him from the inside out. If you hadn't gotten him here as soon as you did–"

"What does that mean, Captain? How bad is he?"

The healer sighed deep, she could not avoid the truth. "The poison attacked his organs, many were severely damaged. We've purged the poison from him and done our best to repair his organs, but after such violent trauma to so many vital organs..."

"Is he going to...?"

"We have to wait and see."

Lieutenant Matsumoto did not ask permission to enter the room. She swept past Unohana and through the swinging doors.

Her feet froze and her breath stopped. Hitsugaya was hooked up to several machines, one breathing for him, one pumping blood into his veins, another supplying medications...The mess from the surgery was not yet cleaned up, his blood was everywhere, the tools still lay soaking in a tray.

There was nothing that could contain her sobs, or the scream that escaped her body. Unohana came in behind her, slowly slipped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her into a comforting embrace.

...

Rukia closed her phone. She sat between Renji and Ichigo on the roof of the school.

"What is it?" they both asked when they saw he grim expression.

"There was an incident. You know that arrancar earlier?"

"Yeah." Renji said, clenching his own soul pager. "The one Captain Hitsugaya took down yesterday?"

"Well it seems there was a problem. Captain Hitsugaya was gravely wounded."

Renji stiffened. "No way, we would have sensed it. His riatsu was steady for the whole battle."

"It happened after– he was poisoned, it did severe damage to his insides. They don't know if he'll..."

"No way..." Ichigo breathed. They sat in silence.

The simultaneous ringing of Renji and Rukia's phones made them all jump. The two soul reapers read the messages on their pagers.

"An emergency recall of all soul reapers." Rukia murmured, Renji was already standing.

"What do you mean?" Ichigo exclaimed.

"All soul reapers are to abandon their posts and return to the soul society at once."

"Wait, what about this world?"

"Ichigo, I'm sorry, there's no time." Renji already had the senkeimon open. Two hell butterflies floated up to Renji and Rukia. She dropped her gigai, they disappeared into the yellow light and were gone.

...

It took Ichigo five minutes to run flat out to Urahara's shop. Using his soul badge, he jumped out of his body ignoring that it tumble to the shop floor. Kisuke stared at him, his hand half raised holding a cup of tea.

"Open the gate now!"

The shop keeper knew something was terribly wrong. His voice was serious.

"What's happened?"

"There was a recall or something, all soul reapers were called back to the Soul Society." The tea cup dropped, Urahara was already rushing to the basement.

"What is it Kisuke?"

"Never. There has never been a recall."

"What does it mean?"

"Something very bad Ichigo." His hand slid into his pocket as he leapt down the basement steps. His fingers whizzed over the buttons and it was at his ear.

"Yoruichi, answer." But it seemed he got no answer.

"Was she in the soul society?"

"Yes."

"Kisuke."

"I'm sorry Ichigo, I can't wait, this is bad. Wait for me here."

"Wait, what?"

But the hat and green coat fell along with the rest of Urahara's gigai. Benihime appeared in his hand, his white robes flowing behind him.

"No, don't!" but again Ichigo was left behind as the senior soul reaper disappeared.

...

Urahara emerged, fully expecting to be accosted by heavily armed soul reapers. He had not had time to conceal his spiritual pressure properly, anyone could have sensed him.

Then he saw the first of them. Bodies, four or five, fallen as if they had never seen the enemy coming.

A dark thought struck him. He moved further into the Soul Society. The deeper into the Seireitei he moved, the more bodies he found. Even in squad twelve, the one Captain he had thought might be alive, was slumped in his chair, his black and white face staring in shock at his monitors. He had seen something before it struck.

"But they can't be dead." he said, his fingers against Kurotsuchi's throat. There was no pulse, but then, he thought perhaps he wasn't the best test subject. Kisuke took a moment to glance at the monitor but he could perceive no irregularity, so he moved back into the squad ground.

Pulse after pulse, there was nothing. But it didn't make sense. When a soul reaper dies, his body does not remain.

"They aren't dead, but as good as."

Urahara turned slowly. Aizen smiled at him.

"What did you do?"

"Simple really, they never even knew they inhaled it." he raised a hand and let a fistful of white powder drift through his fingers. Urahara covered his face but he knew it was already too late.

"Thank you for saving me the trouble of finding you, Kisuske Urahara." He waited to feel pain, to feel weak, but there was nothing. He was simply fine one moment, and then on the ground the next.

"Good work, make sure to get all the zampakutos." Aizen called over his shoulder to Gin, and Uluquiorra. The two disappeared from sight.


	2. Chapter 2

"Rangiku?" Toshiro's eyes peeled open. His body was in agony, he looked down and saw the scars of surgery. Unohana had closed the wound well, there would be no lasting scar, but whatever had taken place inside his body had been severe. He knew he shouldn't be awake. His genius brain knew that in his condition his body should have left him in a deep coma until his wounds were healed. But something had woken him– Hyorinmaru, crying to him desperately.

He spotted his Zampakuto on the floor. Odd, he thought, he was sure squad four would be more careful.

Then he saw her.

Rangiku lay sprawled on the blood stained floor. Suddenly he became aware that there was no spiritual pressure to be felt anywhere– at least, not soul reapers.

He tried to sit up but failed. His torso would not bend, his organs felt inflamed. He rolled to one side and saw Unohana just behind his lieutenant, and others.

"Aizen?" he whispered. In his current state he could hardly sense the dark spiritual power but he was almost certain.

_Master, hurry!_ He ignored his screaming body and hauled himself off the table. With a crash his broken body hit the hard floor, the equipment attached to him crashing all around him. His breathing mask slipped off, the air felt thin. But he ignored it all and crawled to his lieutenant. First he came to his zampakuto. He grasped the handle and drug himself forward again. His fingers reached her face before the pain became too much.

_Master you must hide._

He ignored him. "Rangiku." he stretched just a little further, just enough to touch her neck. There was no pulse. "No." he choked and his body retracted in pain. His consciousness was waning.

_No, Master!_ The ice dragon erupted in the room and scooped up his master. But it was too late, someone was already in the building. Hyorinmaru searched the room hastily.

A medical cupboard, just big enough for his master's body.

Toshiro supressed his cries of agony as he was thrust into cupboad. At the last instant, the dragon became a sword again and he pulled it close to him in the small space. His head was limp against the back of the cupboard but his eyes fell to the small crack where he could still see the prone figure of his lieutenant. A small figured espada swept into the room. He felt Hyorinmaru shield his riatsu– what little he had left– and the arrancar went about his business, never noticing him. He trembled in pain and anger. He wanted to leap to his lieutenant's defence but his body would not respond.

The arrancar never touched the woman or any of the other soul reapers, but he did take their zampakuos. When he was gone, Toshiro hauled himself out of the cupboard and tried to crawl his way back to Rangiku but there was no hope: now that the immediate danger had passed, Hyorinmaru's powers faded and he drifted into unconsciousness.

...

Ichigo stumbled through the senkeimon Tessai had raised. He immediately knew something was wrong. Though he was in the dead centre of the rukon district, there was silence. Upon landing to earth, he saw the sea of bodies. Everyone, everywhere, was dead.

"No way..." he breathed.

He made his way into the seireitei. Only bodies met him, everywhere he turned. The boy pressed on, passing the bodies of friends: Kenpachi and Yachuri, the girl cradled in the giant's arms; Ukitake, his face solemn, unaware of danger; Soifon just looked like she was asleep. His heart skipped when he found Urahara. He check his pulse three times to make sure. Reluctantly he left his friend's body behind– there was someone he had to find.

It didn't take long. Rukia lay next to Renji, his arm around her shoulder. It seemed that some people had seen it coming, others not at all, dropping in mid action. But that was not what the boy was thinking. His mind could only feel the weight of so much loss.

"Oh Rukia..." he broke into sobs, gasping next to their bodies, suffocated by the tragedy. It took a long time for him to tune into the voice of Zangetsu.

"Zangetsu?" he said, his voice trembled.

_There is one_.

"What?"

_There is one, in squad four._

Ichigo took a long time to let go of Rukia's hand. Just before he flash stepped he looked down and noticed her empty sheath. Zabuimaru was gone too.

"What the hell?"

_Master, hurry._ He tore his eyes from them and flash stepped away.

...

"It's the same." he said when he entered the healing house. He opened the doors to the surgical room and immediately was taken aback by the blood. He saw Unohana, then Rangiku then Toshiro, but none were moving.

"I don't understand."

But then he saw it, the green handled blade still in the clutches of the smallest captain in the Soul Society.

"Toshiro?"

Ichigo fell at his side. His heart skipped when he felt a pulse, but it was weak and unsteady. He remembered the phone call and, looking around the devastated room again, realized that this had been where Toshiro had been undergoing surgery.

He lifted the small body back onto the table and began replacing the torn out needles. Last he put on the breathing mask.

Having grown up in a clinic, he knew what to do, but when he was finished he stood helpless. Maybe he could save Toshiro, but how long would it take for the captain to heal? Ichigo could not get back to the world of the living without the help of the soul reapers, so what was he supposed to do, surrounded by a sea of bodies...

...

Toshiro woke. He was no longer in the surgical room but a private one somewhere else in the fourth division. He had been changed from his bloody clothes, the equipment was arranged neatly around his bed. He was still in terrible pain but he heaved a sigh of relief, glad that he had only dreamed his lieutenant's death.

The door opened and an orange haired boy entered. He was in casual earth clothes that reminded him of what Renji wore in his gigai. He had a mouthful of food and a book in his hands.

Then he saw Toshiro. His eyes widened, the book fell from his fingers, and he nearly lost his balance.

"Toshiro!"

Toshiro weakly pulled the mask from his face and tried to speak bu no words came out.

"Be careful." Ichigo came to his side and pulled the mask off. He reached for a pitcher of water and poured a glass. Carefully, he raised the little captain into a sitting position and held the water to his lips. The pain in his gut was excruciating being bent up like this but he craved the water. The cool liquid soothed his dry throat, though he sputtered and very little actually made it down.

"Take it slow." Ichigo said, his voice breaking with emotion as he stared at the living, breathing boy in his arms. Toshiro began to feel anxious.

He coughed up more water but enough had gotten down to clear his throat. Ichigo gently eased him back to a horizontal position. He lay panting and wincing for a few moments, then his eyes opened again and stared at the boy.

"Why are you here?"

"I came through the gate Tessai opened but I was too late."

"What do you mean?"

"Everyone was already out."

"Out?"

"You don't know?"

The memory rang through Toshiro's mind vividly, but he had been sure it was a dream.

"Rangiku, she had no pulse..."

"I know. Everyone, everyone in the whole Soul Society is like that."

"But they're still here?"

"Yeah. So they can't be dead. It took me a while to figure it out, but I remembered that soul reapers disappear like hollows. So they can't be dead. But they have no pulse."

"Ichigo..sometimes it can take a while."

"Well it has been a month."

The boy in the bed choked. Ichigo realized his mistake.

"How long?"

"I'm sorry Toshiro, I didn't think–"

"Ichigo!"

"I came here, a day after your injury. You were the only one alive– or at least I thought then– any way, that's it. I can't get home without a soul reaper, and you were hurt really bad by what I heard."

his voice faded and Toshiro understood why Ichigo stared at him in that way. Alone for all that time, looking after him and just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"And Aizen hasn't come back?"

Ichigo shook his head.

"A month...I can't believe it..." then his eyes glazed, he was already exhausted and Ichigo watched him fall back into a deep sleep.

...

It was night he woke again. Though he hardly thought it possible, the pain in his abdomen was worse. He couldn't help but let a few painful sobs escape him before gaining some measure of control over himself.

It was enough to wake Ichigo. He was on another bed he'd pulled into the room.

"Toshiro?" he rubbed the sleep from his eyes but could hear the sharp intakes of breath and hurried to Toshiro's side. The boy was trembling and drenched in sweat. He turned his head to face Ichigo but he couldn't speak, he was in too much pain.

"What is it?" Ichigo asked desperately. His hand fell to the boys head. "Oh Toshiro..." his temperature was terribly high. The small captain opened his mouth to speak but only a shuddering breath escaped his lips followed by a half suppressed moan. Even in this state, he was trying to be strong.

"Is it your stomach still?" Ichigo moved his hand to the boy's torso. He lifted Toshiro's shirt and placed his hand on the bare flesh.

He had hardly touched the boy when he let out an agonized scream which subsided into now uncontrollable sobs of pain. Ichigo withdrew his hand immediately, though he had touched him long enough to feel abnormal heat coming form his stomach and his belly looked bloated. He couldn't imaging was happening to his organs.

"Toshiro I'm sorry.." he looked around the room but there was nothing. He'd kept the boy alive with what little knowledge he had and by simply replenishing what Unohana had supplied but he didn't understand soul reaper medicines. He couldn't even tell what was a pain killer.

"Hyorinmaru..." Toshiro hissed through his pain. Ichigo grabbed the zampakuto. He took it by the blade in order to hand it handle-first to the boy but he instantly withdrew his hand.

"Its hot, the blade is hot."

He took it by the handle and showed it to Toshiro who looked back at him through a veil of pain.

"The poison..." he whispered.

"The poison? Oh no..." the realization dawned on Ichigo. "Hyorinmaru was poisoned too? How do we fix it?"

"...ice."

"But there isn't any, I've looked."

Toshiro's eyes fell to the window.

"There hasn't been any snow yet." Ichigo breathed. Toshiro sputtered and crimson stained his lips.

"Toshiro! Please hang on. I need you! Everyone needs you!"

Toshiro knew. He knew that if he and Kurosaki really were the only soul reapers left conscious, then more than just the Soul Society was depending on them, the whole word was. But in that moment the agony was too much to bear and his mind shut down.


	3. Chapter 3

The next time Toshiro woke it was to the sensation of cool, running water. He was still in his hospital scrubs, though soaked to the bone, and his sword lay next to him. He was sitting up and the pressure on his organs was painful but not as bad as it had been earlier. He weakly raised his head and saw square porcelain tiles all around him, and Ichigo, slightly damp, sitting just outside the shower.

"Ichigo?" His voice was barely above a whisper.

"It was the only thing I could think to do. You started going into convulsions and your temperature was so high..."

"Thanks."

Ichigo sat back a bit, relief spreading across his face.

"Do you feel any better then?"

"Not so much pain." He was acting tough, but that indicated to Ichigo that he must have felt some improvement: even the small captain's determination to stay strong could not have helped him through the agony he felt before.

"And Hyorinmaru?"

Toshiro barely had the strength to lift his hand but he shifted it across the wet tile to the steel blade. It was still hot.

"He's still infected. The water is the only thing keeping the poison at bay."

"So what do we do? Keep you in the shower until we figure it out?"

"Not much choice."

"Okay then, how do we counter the poison?"

"Unohana must have found a way when she saved me, but my fear is that she used kido."

"Maybe not though, I can go check the surgical room." Ichigo started to rise but hesitated.

"I'll be okay, Ichigo."

"But what if you pass out?"

"I'll still be okay. Ichigo hardly looked convinced but relented and left the room. The water continued to pour down on Toshiro and though the constant rain was uncomfortable and his fingers and toes were numbed by the cold, it was soothing to his inflamed torso.

He lifted his shirt and saw that his stomach was flat again, the swelling had gone down. Inside, though, his organs still felt bloated, hot and caused him a great deal of discomfort.

Toshiro had hardly had time to think this all out when Ichigo returned, his face strained.

"What is it?" Toshiro whispered.

"I feel someone. I think its arrancars."

"Shit. You have to run."

"Come on." Ichigo shut off the shower and put his hands under Toshiro's arm pits." The slight movement caused the captain to go rigid.

"Wait Ichigo."

He pulled back and saw that Toshiro had turned white as a ghost. He barely touched Toshiro's stomach and the boy yelped and his body jerked.

"Its still that bad?"

"Only if you touch it." Toshiro gasped. "Don't move me. Just run."

"No. They'll find you."

"I have no spiritual pressure."

"We still can't risk it."

Toshiro knew how much was riding on his survival. He grit his teeth.

"The tower of repentance– it will hide your spirit. Hurry before they sense you."

Ichigo slid Hyornmaru over his back and then tore his sleeve, rolling the cloth into a thick strip and lifting it to Toshiro's mouth.

"Sorry about this."

"Let's just do this." Toshiro bit down and Ichigo lifted him up, Toshiro muffling his scream in both the cloth and Ichigo's collar bone. The teen had no time to be gentle, he flash stepped to the white tower in a matter of seconds and darted inside.

"I hope we were fast enough." Toshiro said nothing, he was still gasping in Ichigo's shoulder. Ichigo's own clothes had gotten soaked from holding Tohsiro but the liquid against his collar was warm. He looked down and saw the red stain of blood, soaking through the cloth still in Toshiro's mouth.

"Hide." the boy barely whispered.

Ichigo saw no place but the rafters. He stared up and made to jump but nothing happened. The seki seki would not only hide his spiritual pressure but nullify it.

"Damn it."

Still, it was the best place to hide so he made the long climb, first up the stairs and then the long struggle to climb the walls and not drop his small burden.

He reached the rafters just as the door far below opened. Ichigo set Toshiro on the wide beam and lay flat next to him, praying they wouldn't be seen. Toshiro trembled uncontrollably and Ichigo didn't trust that he wouldn't cry out in pain so he reached a hand over and covered the boy's blood stained mouth. Toshiro understood and closed his eyes, concentrating on containing himself.

It took a day to be sure they were alone again.

Ichigo slipped out of the tower and felt out. Nothing. The arrancars had searched for a full twenty four hours but it seemed they had already reached the conclusion that Toshiro was not here– he knew they would suspect he was in the land of the living. Ichigo had to hope that their search there wouldn't involve his friends.

By this time Toshiro was back to the pain he'd been in before, if not worse. He couldn't pass out due to the sheer agony and despite the care Ichigo took in taking him back to the showers, he still gasped and sobbed and coughed up blood. The world was hazy, his vision bouncing with Ichigo's movements, then finally the cool water was on him again. Ichigo still had him in his arms but the smallest bit of comfort he got from the water was enough to allow him to pass out briefly.

...

It was only a few hours later that Toshiro woke. The water was still running, but he felt warmth at his back and realized he was not leaning against the hard tile.

"Ichigo, what are you doing?" the words came out through trembling lips and the boy behind him shifted.

"You're awake."

"Ichigo..." the boy who had been holding him shifted away from him leant him back against the cold tile. It was less comfortable but he still had his pride.

"Sorry, but you went limp and it was hard to keep you propped up...I was worried."

"I'm not a child."

Ichigo swallowed his frustration. "I was just trying to help."

Toshiro sighed after a long moment. "I'm sorry Ichigo. I'm just tired of being helpless."

"I know." They lapsed into silence for a while.

"You should get changed." Toshiro said after a while. His eyes were closed and Ichigo had thought he was unconscious.

"Yeah. Are you hungry, can I get you anything?"

Toshiro just shook his head. He had been surviving intravenously on the contents of the bags Ichigo had been supplying, something Unohahna had lain out before they all lost consciousness. It had been a few days since he'd been hooked to the machine, he must be getting weak, but it seemed his stomach just couldn't take it. Ichigo rose.

"I'm going to look for an antitdote too."

Still Toshiro did not open his eyes but nodded slightly so the teen left.

Ichigo went first to Renji's house. He had been borrowing his clothes all month, tired of wearing his soul reaper clothes all the times. Renji had clothes made for his gigai, tee shirts and jeans, things Ichigo preferred to wear.

Now, he changed, gathered up the rest of such clothes as well as his uniform, and brought them back to the squad four barracks. Since Toshiro was awake, he would have to limit his trips out into the rest of the Seireitei to get supplies. He stocked up on as much food as he could carry, searched for something Toshiro might be able to eat. He went to Byakuya's manor, taking a moment to look in on Renji, Byakuya and Rukia where they lay in the main bedroom. No change, as usual.

He continued to the orchard and picked some fruit he hoped Toshiro could try. When he was finished, he dumped everything in the room in squad four and then searched the surgical room. He knew there was little hope. He had gone through every vial, hoping to find something to rouse the others or heal Toshiro but found nothing. Eventually, he returned empty handed to the shower room. Toshiro hadn't moved.

"I brought fruit, maybe you could try to have some." Toshiro shook his head. Ichigo sighed and peeled one anyway. "Even just some juice." He leaned into the shower and placed a piece in Toshiro's hand.

The boy captain peeled open his eyes and looked down at the fruit. After a long moment, he raised it to his mouth but did not chew, he simply sucked the juice from it. It was a struggle to even swallow this but it seemed he must have been hungry on some level. Ichigo continued to peel the fruit and hand sections to the captain.

The next few days were long. Toshiro inisited that he didn't need to be constantly supervised and indeed he never moved from his position leaned against the wall. He didn't complain but Ichigo could imagine his discomfort, from hunger, the pains in his stomach and the constant onslaught of cold water. Ichigo couldn't even tell if he slept. Their conversations were few but Toshiro wanted to know every detail Ichigo knew; his genius, fevered brain trying to find some way to save them.

"What did you do with them?'

"Well at first I was going to burry them, but then I figured out they weren't dead so I moved as many people as I could into the sqaud four barracks and then the rest into the manors and other barracks. I tried to match people to their squads but there were a lot of people I didn't know. I started working on the Rukon district but it's endless. I'll never get them all inside before winter, so we'll just have to figure this all out before then."

"You didn't see anything? No reason why they were unconscious?"

"No."

"Kurotsuchi? What about him?"

"He was unconscious like everyone else."

"I don't suppose you could make sense of his computers?"

"No."

"I thought not." Ichigo felt that patronizing edge to the young captain's voice but said nothing.

"Do you think he might have something to cure this?"

"I have no idea, and even if I could move, I don't think I'd recognize it if I saw it."

"What did you do, all this time, other than move bodies?"

"Not much, I had my routine. Get up, check you, check everyone else, eat here, check everyone again, try to move people in the rukon district, come back, eat again, read, go to sleep. Renji didn't have many books so I borrowed some of yours, I figured you wouldn't mind."

"Ichigo...I'm sorry."

"What for?"

"That it's always you who gets caught up in this stuff. That it's always you that has to save everyone."

"But I need your help this time."

"I know." At this, Toshiro reached for his sword. "Hyorinmaru." he sighed desperately. "I haven't heard him since I woke up. I won't be able to open the Senkeimon without him."

Ichigo had feared this, they were well and truly stuck.


	4. Chapter 4

On the third day Toshiro began to tremble.

"Its all this cold water, I can't believe you didn't start shivering before now." Ichigo sat in the shower and put his hand against Toshiro's forehead. He was still hot but when he moved his hand down further his cheek was deathly cold. His fingers and toes were practically frozen.

"If I leave, it will just get worse."

"I don't know Toshiro, this looks pretty bad."

"I'll be okay." he spoke through chattering teeth. It didn't take long for Ichigo to realize he would not be okay. He left for some food and came back to find Toshiro unconscious, his lips blue, skin white.

"That's it."

He pulled the small body out of the shower and then looked at the sword. Maybe if Hyorinmaru stayed cool, it would help Toshiro. He had to hope. When he lifted the small captain into his arms he realized with shock that this body was rigid, he could not unbend him. He had sat three days in the cold water unmoving and now his muscles had seized in that position.

"Oh I whish I knew kido."

This thought was only reinforced when Toshiro woke. Ichigo had done his best to dry him off and change his clothes and had wrapped him in warm blankets on the bed but the damage was done.

"Take me back."

"You turned blue! And you've gone all stiff."

Toshiro tried to move but couldn't. Pain creased through his face.

"I can't move." There was an edge of panic and Ichigo dreaded to think of how painful it would feel.

"You need a hot bath."

"Ha, yeah right." And as if to emphasize the point hot pain lanced through his abdomen, but it wasn't as bad as previously.

"I know, the heat would make you worse but I don't know what else to do."

"Just unbend me."

"I tried."

"Just do it."

"I don't want to uh– break you."

"Don't be stupid."

"Fine." Ichigo hauled the blanket's off Toshiro and the captain noticed he was changed.

"You changed me."

"Umm, Toshiro, I've been taking care of you for a month, what did you think–"

"Never mind."

Ichigo sighed and moved Toshiro to the centre of the bed where his body remained rigidly in the sitting position. "Here we go."

He tried to force Toshiro's shoulders down with one hand and hold his legs down with the other. He was terrified the small captain would snap in two.

Eventually, after Toshiro let out a long suppressed scream, he stopped.

"Why did Rukia never teach you Kido?" Toshiro sighed after the pain subsided.

"Hey, I can do this, I am the son of a doctor after all." He pushed Toshiro onto his side and pulled off his shirt.

"What are you doing?'

"I'm going to unknot your muscled the old fashioned way, and its going to hurt."

He pressed his thumbs into Toshiro's back and felt the taught muscle. He began rubbing out the knots one by one with his strong hands. He was right, it did hurt, but it also felt relieving, especially when a muscle finally relaxed. They lost count of the hours but by the end of it Toshiro could move again. He pulled his shirt back on and lay out flat, taking pressure off his stomach. He was still gasping in both pain and relief when his eyes closed and he drifted to sleep.

Ichigo had been right in suspecting that Captain Hitsugaya hadn't slept in the shower. He spent the whole of the following day asleep, though every once and a while a moan of pain escaped him and he would shift to make his stomach more comfortable. Ichigo reinserted the needles with some intravenous sustenance and whatever the medications were that Unohana had been trying.

...

Ichigo woke to find himself alone in the room. The needles had been carefully removed and the covers hardly disturbed, there was no sign of force. Still, he couldn't help but feel a wave of panic as he made his way from the room and tried to find the small captain.

It didn't take long. He couldn't feel his spiritual pressure but he knew where the boy must have gone. He was right. Toshiro stood in the shower, his forehead against his hand on the tiles, eyes shut.

"Your on your feet." Ichigo exclaimed and the teal eyes shot open. He hadn't even heard Ichigo come in.

He looked as if he wanted to say something but then didn't and shut his eyes again.

"Toshiro?"

"I'm fine, you can go back to bed Ichigo."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, look I'm standing."

"Yeah, that's great but..."

"Ichigo..." but the harsh edge from his voice faded and he looked at the teen not as an inferior but as a friend. "I thought if I could get up and walk all the way here, he would answer. But I was wrong."

"Hyorinmaru is still silent?"

"We can't wait much longer. Everyone is depending on us."

Ichigo knew this, he'd been waiting a month for his only hope to wake and now he couldn't do the one thing they really needed. But Ichigo had also learned a great deal of patience in his time alone.

"It will take as long as it takes."

"Not good enough."

"It has to be."

"No. I'm going to go through Unohana's supplies, then Kurotsuchi's. There has to be–"

He clenched his gut and doubled in pain. Ichigo caught him as he tumbled soaking wet out of the shower.

"You shouldn't be moving."

"I've wasted enough time." Toshiro tried to shake Ichigo off but failed and in his defeat went limp in the young man's grasp. "Tomorrow." he said after a bout of panting. "You are taking me tomorrow."

"Fine. But for now please just try to survive the night."

...

Shortly after dawn Toshiro woke. Ichigo was already up, preventing the captain from leaving on his own again.

"If you're really determined to do this, you're going to need something for the pain. I brought these but I didn't want to give them to you in case they were the wrong thing."

He laid a few clear bags on the table with writing on them. They were for IV lines and he read the black lettering carefully.

"These are painkillers, but they inhibit the senses."

"Your senses are already inhibited by pain."

Toshiro considered. "Do you know how to regulate the dose?"

"Yeah."

"Okay then, put it a quarter of the regular dose. That should be enough to take the edge off."

"What about this?" Ichigo showed him the bag of the medications he'd been giving him for the month.

"I don't think this is much good. Its an anti-inflamatory but I think that this is all being caused by Hyorinmaru. He's the one that needs treating. If only I could connect to him."

"We'll figure it out. Fruit?" He handed the boy the pre-peeled fruit that he sucked on. He still could not swallow solid food. Ichigo swallowed a roll and a piece of Byakuya's fruit then taped down Toshiro's IV and administered the drugs. They made their way Unohana's supply room and went through everything, one by one.

"I still think she probably used kido to cure me."

"Can you still do kido without hyorinmaru?"

"I tried. Nothing."

"Could you teach me?"

"I don't know, but if we can't find an answer, that may be our only choice."

"Toshiro, do you think they went to the world of the living to look for us?"

"...Yes."

"And?"

"We must hurry, Ichigo."

They found nothing at Unohana's except for a book of healing kido spells that Ichigo grabbed in case it came down to him trying to learn. Next they moved to the twelfth division.

Toshiro walked slowly, leaning heavily on his IV pole, searching for clues. He kept slipping lower and lower and Ichigo wanted to help him walk or make him sit down but he knew the captain would only resent him. He didn't want to treat him like a child but it was hard not too after all that time taking care of him.

During their search Toshiro's trembling legs finally gave out on him. Ichigo wanted to call it a day but Toshiro insisted he increase the pain medication ever so slightly and help him to Kuortsuchi's main terminal. Toshiro took a moment for the medication to kick in and sat breathing heavily in the scientist's seat. After a moment however, he shook his head and concentrated on the screens.

"Good, he's still logged in." he murmured, scrolling through page after page of scientific mumbojumbo Ichigo could not understand in the least.

"Does it say anything useful?"

"The last reading...the air quality was normal during my surgery and when you arrived but somewhere in between there was a spike in something called Railean. Hmmm..." He pondered it for a while and Ichigo didn't want to interrupt his thoughts. "It doesn't make sense. If this was a threat to the Soul Society, Kurotsuchi would have had time to let us know. There must have been something else that he saw." Ichigo had explained the expression of shock that had been etched in the man's face. "Wait– there!"

"What is it?"

"Nothing."

"What do you mean nothing?"

"I mean nothing. Someone deleted the data after everyone passed out."

"Aizen?"

"Or one of his minions. He doesn't want us to be able to figure it out."

"But what's this Railean thing?"

"I think its probably when he entered the Soul Society– the dark spiritual pressure he and the arrancars emit probably unbalance some of the spiritual particles."

"So we don't know anything more than when we started?"

"No."

"What about your injury, did Kurotsuchi investigate that at all?"

"Possibly, I'll have to go through the rest of the computer's history." Ichigo almost suggested they take a break but he knew there was no point so he bit his tongue.

It took another few hours before Ichigo heard a satisfied hiss from his companion and rushed to his side to see what he'd found.

"I got it."

"What?"

"A few months ago Kurotsuchi got a reading from this same arrancar. He analysed its venom...according to this he has a cure."

"For Hyorinmaru?"

"I don't know, its probably what Unohana used on me but maybe it will work for Hyorinmaru as well.

"Where is it?"

"That's the problem, it doesn't say."

"Well how are we supposed to find it?"

Ichigo was hovering behind the chair staring at the nonesensical figures on the screen.

"Toshiro?"

The boy didn't anwser and he looked down. He saw the white head against the keyboard and two small arms clenched around his abdoment.

"Oh Toshiro." He increased the painkillers. Toshiro's sweat covered face turned his way in silent protest but then the drugs took effect and he relaxed.

"Ichi...go..." he was not asleep but his head flopped to one side as Ichigo straightened him out in the chair. "Turn it...turn it off..."

"No, you're killing yourself, you need to rest."

"...find it." his eyes were glazed but they stare ahead at the screen and Ichigo read what Toshiro had highlighted with his cursor before the pain. It was a number, some part of Kurotsuchi's complex filing system. He looked around at the endless walls of vials but even through the haze of drugs, Toshiro's eyes screamed determination.

"Fine. But you are staying put until I find it. Just try to go to sleep." he left the captain to begin his search at the back wall, covered in glass cabinets. Toshiro tried to watch him but his drug induced haze was getting worse.

He didn't know how long he sat there but he had to admit that the pain was considerably less and he tried to give in to sleep, but something was wrong.

"Hyorinmaru!" the boy's shout nearly knocked Ichigo off the ladder where he was standing. As it was, he spilled the purple contents of one vial down his, or rather Renji's, blue jeans.

"What is it?" He said trying to shake Toshiro into consciousness when he reached him.

"I don't know. I just felt like he was in danger."

"It's the drugs– " But then Ichigo felt it too. "What is that? A hollow?" Then it dawned on him. "Oh no, its probably attracted to Hyorinmaru's spiritual pressure. But that must mean..."

"He's awake." The boy whispered.

Ichigo swallowed hard and grabbed the small captain. He quickly pulled out the IV and flash stepped back toward the showers.

A massive hollow loomed outside the fourth division. Ichigo's heart leapt, so many people were inside and defenceless.

"Go, Ichigo." He didn't hesitate. He set the little captain down on the grass and unsheathed Zangetsu.

"Hey you!" He called as he struck. The hollow turned away from the baracks and slashed out with large claws. Their battle raged, Toshiro became aware that Ichigo was losing. The hollow had become stronger with no soul reaper powers to diminish its dark spiritual pressure.

Ichigo took a hard blow and even though Toshiro couldn't see very well, it didn't look like the boy was moving anymore.

"Ichigo..." he crawled forward. He could feel the connection with his zampakuto. It should be enough.

The beast was baring down on the teen, he was struggling to rise, dark blood poured from his shoulder. He couldn't raise the sword.

"Hado 33!" Toshiro screamed, his vision blurred, he hoped his aim was at least close. He felt a thud and knew the beast had at least been partially stunned.

"Toshiro!" Ichigo staggered and fell next to the boy. They were both panting.

"Where is he?" Hitsugaya breathed.

"He's coming back."

"Use you're bankai."

Ichigo nodded. "Ban– " Out of no where they were hit by a spiked tail. Ichigo barely saw it retracting into the creature's body as he flew through the air. He felt a barb deep in his leg and another jammed between two ribs, causing him agony with every breath. The monster was coming back, Toshiro was no where to be seen.

...

"Ichigo?" Toshiro saw three black barbs that pierced his hand, wrist and forearm but could feel no pain. Unohana's painkillers were still pumping inside him. He tried to stand but nothing happened.

"Ichigo!" but his voice was weak. Even if he couldn't feel the damage, his body was still growing weaker by the second.

"Looks like I got here just in time." He heard the voice and looked up. Through the fog all he could see was the glint of glasses.

"Aizen?"

"No." then he saw the blue shimmer of a bow and arrow and he knew it was the quincy. He tried to follow the arrow as it arced through the air and watched as the hollow fell dead. The last of Toshiro's strength left him and his head sank to the ground.

"Well, I'm glad that at least someone is alive." Uryu said, hefting the boy to one shoulder. "Even if you are a soul reaper."

...


	5. Chapter 5

Now there were three in the bedroom in Squad Four. Ichigo woke first, his wounds were rapidly healing. He looked down at the bandages on his side and leg. Surely the little captain didn't have the strength to bring him all the way back here?

"I understand now, why you never came back."

The voice struck him like an electric shock. He looked to the chair in the corner where the dark haired teen pushed his glasses up on his nose and came to Ichigo's side. He was in his school uniform, stained with blood.

"Uryu, how did you get here?"

"Tessai. I would have come sooner, I'm sorry Ichigo."

His voice was low, his expression grave.

"What is it?"

Uryu straightened himself. "Things aren't too good back in the world of the living, and now I suddenly know why. No more soul reapers means no more Konsos. Even spirits who would normally move on peacefully seem to be getting trapped, like the walls to the Soul Society are closed to them. Their growing numbers attracted a lot of hollows."

"Oh no..."

"That's why its taken me so long. I've been keeping them at bay along with Tessai, Chad, Orihime and the kids from the shop. Even that Don Kononji guy has been helping. It was a losing battle for a while, but once we gathered most of the wandering souls in Urahara's basement, their spirits were hidden, now things are basically back to normal, so don't worry about home. However, had we been able to round them up faster, it wouldn't have taken me so long to come."

"You're alone?"

"Yes. Given my Quincy powers, I was the best person to send through the gate, but at the same time, they couldn't keep the hollows at bay without me. We had to wait until we'd gathered enough souls in the basement to reduce the number of hollows."

"There were arrancars a while ago, I think they went to the world of the living, did you see them?"

"I sensed them, yes, but they were a small party and they seemed to be searching for someone– the two of you I assume. We decided not to engage them, no one was hurt, they left."

"Lucky."

"So, what is wrong with Toshiro? That's the reason you haven't been able to come a back right?"

"Yeah, but now you're trapped too."

"But I have this." He pulled a modified soul pager from his pocket. "I've already been in contact with Tessai. And before you say anything no we couldn't call you, Urahara does not have that can be contacted and consequently traced by the Soul Society, this is for two way communication only, in this case between Tessai and me."

"Can he open the gate?"

"It only opens from one direction and the permanent senkeimon form this side must be activated with a Zampakuto, which he does not have. If we want to go home, we have to open the senkeimon from this side."

Ichigo's chest fell, he sunk back into the sheets.

"That's why I asked you what's wrong with Captain Hitsugaya."

Ichigo explained the situation, up to the vial that needed to be found.

"I see. Then I will find it while you rest. But one more thing, do you know what happened to them all?"

Ichigo shook his head.

"Then how did Captain Hitsugaya manage to get away?"

"He said he had a face mask on giving him oxygen. It must have been an airborne poison."

Uryu's face was grave. "And it took them all down that quickly...even Urahara."

He didn't need to say anymore, they both understood how dangerous Aizen was.

Uryu left and Ichigo rolled out of bed and got changed. Uryu had not known to give Toshiro more pain killers so Ichigo hooked up both those and the fluids. The boy slept on, the wound in his arm unable to heal as quickly as Ichigo's without spiritual pressure. Still, earlier he had used a hado spell...

"Ichigo!" He felt the small wounded hand reach out and grab his sleeve.

"Toshiro what is it?"

"More painkillers." Ichigo didn't argue, if the captain was desperate enough to ask, he must really be suffering. Ichigo opened the IV further.

"Is that better?"

"Yes but that's not the reason I need them. Listen, before I get too drowsy." His voice was already faint so Ichigo leaned in close. "Earlier I sensed Hyorinmaru again and we were able to communicate briefly."

"And?"

"And he _is _infected but the reason he hasn't been able to connect to me is because I would then feel his pain. When I have the painkillers, its safer for him to connect with me again. Keep them going long enough for him to manifest, then you can heal him when you find the drug. Otherwise you won't be able to administer them."

"That's great, Uryu is looking now."

"Uryu..." the memory flooded back to him. "That's right, this is good..." The drugs began to hit him, he sunk lower.

"Its going to be okay, Toshiro, Uryu is smart he'll–"

"I got it."

Ichigo spun and saw Uryu casually holding the vial up to show him.

"What, no way, there were like a million shelves to go through!"

"Not if you understand the basic logic of the arrangement of– "

"Whatever, you stay with Toshiro, I'm going to get Hyorinmaru."

Ichigo turned off the shower. He felt the blade, still hot, but did not wait. He did not want to be holding it when it burst into a dragon.

"Is there enough room in here?" Uruyu asked when Ichigo lay the blade down on his bed and stepped back.

"I hope so."

They stood back with anticipation, Toshiro had been propped up on his pillows and now watched his sword with heavy lidded eyes.

"Hyorinmaru..." the whisper was barely audible but the call from his soul was deafening.

"You ready?" Uryu asked, handing the syringe to Ichigo.

"You bet I am."

He took hold of the needle just as the ice dragon burst forth.

It was a terrifying moment in which an agonized scream ripped from Toshiro even in his drug induced state.

But more terrifying than that sound was the vison before them– a dragon of ice that was melting; no majesty, no strength. A small whimper escaped him before his whole body dropped to the floor, streams of water running off him.

Ichigo did not hesitate. He lunged forward, avoiding the rearing head of the pain-blinded dragon and plunged the needle through torrents of water until he hit scaled ice. He feared the syringe would snap but it slipped into the soft ice and he pressed down.

An ice wing caught him as it re-solidified and he was hurled through the wall, stopping somewhere in the next room. Uryu threw himself over the helpless boy in the bed, splinters showered them, the temperature in the room dropped several degrees. Hyorinmaru reared back, snorting, frost.

"Hyorinmaru..." Uryu pulled away from the boy and the ice dragon manoeuverer his way to his master. He nuzzled his head against his body, and though barely conscious, Hitsugaya lifted his trembling hands to his zampakuto's head and sighed in relief. The two stayed in their embrace for a moment longer before the ice dragon disintegrated and returned to sword form, dropping down on the frost covered sheets.


	6. Chapter 6

"Ichigo, you're awake." The boy shot up in bed, remembering what happened.

"Did it work?" he scanned the room but they were no longer in the private room Ichigo had been using for the last weeks. They were in someone's quarters.

"Yes, it worked." Uryu stepped aside and Ichigo saw the sleeping captain, his sword clutched in his left hand. "He should wake when the medication wears off."

"I can't believe we finally did it."

"I know its been a long time for you Ichigo, but you must not forget, this is but a very small step in a long battle."

Ichigo nodded but he couldn't help but revel in this success. He had waited every day for a month for the boy to wake, and since then, spent ever day trying to make him better. Even the throbbing headache could not wipe the smile from his face.

...

It had taken a significant amount of drugs to get Hyorinmaru to emerge. Therefore, when Toshiro woke, though he was finally looking like the old captain again, his words were slurred and his feet unsteady. They did, however, understand one word he said, _tea_.

The three sat around a table in Unohana's private kitchen, sipping tea and making their plans.

"Feeling better?" Ichigo asked and Toshiro nodded as he downed his fourth cup. His eyes were much brighter and his hands steadier.

"Much. I should be able open the senkeinmon tonight."

"Really?" Ichigo asked excitedly.

"Yeah, we should get ready after this."

"Okay."

"Excuse me, but what exactly _is_ the plan?" Uryu asked leaning into the table.

"Figure out how to wake everyone up, kill Aizen." Ichigo said simply.

Toshiro said nothing at Ichigo's statement. A look passed between him and Uryu, one that Ichigo did not catch. The boy finished his last cup and stood.

"I'm going to get cleaned up. Meet you back here."

Ichigo stood as well. "Yeah, I'll go get my soul reaper clothes." The two left Uryu alone to contemplate their situation.

Toshiro showered off all the sweat, pain and exhaustion from the past days. His muscles were weak from a month in bed but he felt his spiritual pressure rising all the time. He returned to his own quarters and put on a fresh uniform, strapping Hyorinmaru to his back with satisfaction. The zampakuto had suffered greatly, but now, back with his master where he belonged, he felt relief.

"Thank you, for protecting me, Hyorinmaru." The captain whispered over his shoulder.

Toshiro met the other two and they left for the gate. Uryu and Ichigo watched as the small captain worked for more than an hour, using intracate kido and numerous techniques to open the senkeimon so that would not harm the humans. Finally, he stepped back, his work done.

"Sorry it took so long, it usually takes four soul reapers." The small captain wiped sweat from his brow. "Go ahead."

Ichigo stared and felt Uryu close behind. He stopped.

"Let's go Ichigo." He sensed the urgency in Uryu's voice. Ichigo spun.

"You aren't coming." he spoke to Toshiro who had not moved.

"I can't."

"You can't stay here alone."

"Of course I can. Now go home, Ichigo."

"But what will we do?"

"You need to go home, you've been here too long. I will keep researching, then I'll let you know."

"Ichigo, it's the right thing." Uryu urged.

"You were just going to let me go through."

"It doesn't matter."

"It does. Toshiro, we need to strategize."

"We will. Uryu has soul pagers that will reach me now. You need to take care of your world and I need to take care of mine. There's no choice Ichigo. I'll call you when I have something."

"But– "

"Good bye."

Uryu lay a hand on Ichigo's shoulder and pushed him forward. The teen shook him off but kept going, there was no arguing with Hitsugaya.

The two humans disappeared and the gate shut. Captain Hitsugaya turned his back on the gate to stare at his empty world.

**_Okay, very short chapter I know but this is all I have written so far so I figured I'd just publish what I have and start working on the new stuff fresh. Since I haven't pre-written the rest of it (usually I finish a story and then publish as I edit like I'm doing with _THE MEANING OF A MAN _right now) so it may take a little longer to update (but don't worry I'm not talking weeks, just days, I want to know how this turns out too!) though the same thing happened in _ASHES TO ASHES_ and I've been able to keep up with that so fingers crossed my brain keeps working! Also thank you all so much for the reviews. I love writing and I feel like this is a great medium to have fun but also hear feedback about my work so thanks sooo much and keep it coming, all of it, critical, constructice, positive- whatever you want! _**

**_Peace,_**

**_Riza_**


	7. Chapter 7

Black faded to grey and eventually to the pale, failing light of dusk on the Soul Society as Ichigo exited Tessai's Gargantua. He pulled his soul pager from his robes and pushed down on the transmitter.

"Toshiro? Toshiro?"

No answer.

"Captain Hitsugaya?"

Still no answer.

"Dammit." he tucked the device into his robes and marched on through the sereitei. He performed his normal check that he'd done in his weeks trapped here but did not come across the little captain.

"You had better not have gotten yourself caught." he muttered and pushed on. There was one place, he realized, that he had not checked yet.

In the very depths of the twelfth division he found the little captian. He was hunched over paperwork scattered all around his chair and on the keyboard of Kourutsuchi's main terminal.

"Toshiro."

The young captain didn't even look up.

"Ichigo. Why are you here?"

Ichigo stopped, stunned for a moment then feeling a wave of incredible anger.

"Are you serious? You stopped answering your soul pager."

"It ran out of power."

"There are hundred of them, you couldn't just pick up another one off a different soul reaper?"

"No time."

"That was two days ago."

"I've been busy Ichigo."

"Too busy to–"

"Yes."

Ichigo's anger subsided and he spun the captain's chair so he was forced to face him.

"You found something?"

"Yes." Toshiro's face was grave.

Ichigo's stomach clenched in anticipation.

"What?"

"The computer has been continuing to take readings since the day Aizen came."

"And?"

"And even though it is imperceptible to us, their bodies are emitting a faint spiritual pressure."

"This is good."

Toshiro still looked grim and Ichigo's hopes faded.

"I think its what's keeping them unconscious."

"No, I thought you said it was some airborne drug."

"Yes, at first, Aizen could never succeed in his plan if he had to battle through every soul reaper."

"What plan? What do you mean?"

"This spiritual pressure, the reason we can't feel it is because its all funnelling in one direction– to somewhere beyond this realm. I believe it is the link between the soul reapers and their zampakutos which we can safely guess are being held in Heuco Mundo."

Ichigo gripped the edges of the chair and moved closer to the captain in anticipation.

"I think, Ichigo, that Aizen is using this connection to keep them in this state. No drug could do this and preserve their bodies and their lifeforce. They should have died of starvation or dehydration– even soul reapers can't survive this long. But none of them have changed in appearance since the day they fell asleep. They all appear to be in perfect health."

"Why is Aizen doing this?"

"I can't be sure, but I have two theories. First, Aizen is attempting to steal the powers of the zampakutos. Secondly, he is fully aware of this link and exploiting it to manipulate the Zamakutos and their masters."

"In what way."

"My best guess, he's trying to brainwash them. Make them into his army."

"What?"

"It would explain a lot. Especially why he hasn't sent more arrancars after you are me."

Ichigo stood up slowly and breathed deep.

"Because we're surrounded."

"Yes. Any moment our friends could wake up as enemies. He knows he doesn't have to worry about us now because as soon as he's finished, he can eliminate us with hardly any effort."

"We have to stop him."

Toshiro stood too but his shoulders were slumped in exhaustion and defeat.

"Ichigo, there are two of us."

The boy's face creased with anger.

"We can't give up."

"No. But we can't do anything either."

Ichigo could not contain his anger. He grabbed the small captain roughly by his shoulder and knelt before him to look him directly in the eyes.

"So you'll give up on them all? On Rangiku and Momo? On all your friends and everyone who depends on you? Are you such a coward?"

Toshiro's eyes widened and then narrowed. He shrugged out of the teen's grip.

"I am a captain, Ichigo, I can not be a coward. But I cannot ignore the facts."

"Then you are giving up."

"No. You are right, everyone is depending on me. But only me, not you. This burden does not fall on your shoulders, you are a human. Leave. Leave and don't come back. Take care of your world."

It was Ichigo's turn for his eyes to widen in shock. He stood, outraged at the thought.

"They're my friends too. And you can't do this on your own!"

"It doesn't matter, it's none of your business. Now go. They could wake up at anytime and then we'll both be dead."

"Then you have to come back too."

"No, what I need is here."

"What do you mean, what you need?"

"To open a pathway to Heuco Mundo."

"Then we go together."

"No."

"Dammit Toshiro!"

"ICHIGO!" The teen quieted for a moment and watched the soul reaper. "Its Captain Hitsugaya." And with that he raised a hand and Ichigo fell unconscious before he even heard the end the kido spell.


	8. Chapter 8

"Ichigo?"

The red head blinked and slowly focussed on the worried face of Orihime. Behind her he could see Uryu, Chad and Tessai.

"That little bastard." Ichigo sat up and Orihime's concern quickly faded.

"Ichigo, you shouldn't say such things."

"He's so arrogant." His rage overpowered the residual feeling of weakness from Toshiro's kido and he pushed himself to his feet.

"Open the gate." he demanded turning to face Tessai.

"I have already tried. It seems Captain Hitsugaya has raised a barrier of some sort. I am unfamiliar with it, it may take some time to penetrate it."

"Kurotsuchi." Ichigo growled. He continued when he caught the questioning looks. "As far as I can tell he's been in that lab for the last two weeks. He probably picked up a few tricks, including a way into Heuco Mundo."

"Like what they used before?" Chad asked.

"Probably."

"And he plans to go alone, hence why he sent you back by force." It wasn't a question but Ichigo nodded to confirm Uryu's assumption. "Then he'll die."

"I know."

"And that's why he wouldn't allow you to go with him."

"What do you mean, like a suicide mission?" Uryu met Ichigo's question with a dark stare, and Tessai only nodded gravely. Orihime stifled a cry.

"You have to open the Senkeimon then." Ichigo insisted. "Or...the Garganta."

"Ichigo no!"

"Orihime, I have to!"

"No." Ichigo was surprised to find that it was Uryu who protested. "Ichigo, if it really is a suicide mission, then there is no point in you both dying. And if he is willing to give up his life for it when so many people depend on him, then he must be pretty sure its going to work."

"We can't let this happen."

"We have to."

The room fell silent. Ichigo clutched the soul pager tight in his hand but he knew it would be of no help.

"Damn him." he muttered and stormed out of the room.

...

Ten days past– perhaps the longest ten days of Ichigo's life. He had fought to rescue Rukia, he had raced to save Orihime, but none of those battles had had the power to determine the fate of worlds and as much as he didn't want the little captain to die, the mission meant much more than just his life, and Ichigo could do nothing but wait.

He sat in school, hearing nothing, staring out the window just waiting to see the sky tear open and for all of Heuco Mundo's worst creatures to pour out of the abyss into their world. Or, perhaps worse, for a Senkeimon to open and to have to battle friends. But nothing happened and he just had to wait.

Ichigo left school having absorbed nothing and walked to the river. He went here most days to try to clear his head but it never seemed to work. He dropped his bag and just stared at the water.

A blue light shot pas him, just barely missing his right ear. He stumbled back and before the next one came, slapped his soul badge onto his chest and dodged the attack with flashstep. But it was a trap. In trying to avoid the blue light he ran into an even brighter, more powerful spell and fell to his knees half stunned.

"Bakudo sixty-three: Sajo Sabaku!"

Golden chains wrapped themselves tightly around Ichigo's body and he was completely immobilized. He fell to the ground, waiting for his attacker to appear.

"_That_ is why I didn't take you with me."

Ichigo saw the tuft of white hair followed by the grim face of the small soul reaper.

"Toshiro! You're alive!"

"Yes, only because I left you behind." He bent down and lightly touched a chain and it disintegrated, freeing the teen.

"What are you talking about?"

"You may be powerful Ichigo, but you are lacking in many soul reaper skills, including spell casting and stealth."

"Hey, I may not have learned Kido but I broke into Aizen's palace before remember."

"And you were caught, several times. You do not know how to control or conceal your spiritual energy, instead you use all your power all the time screaming your location to any enemy within miles. If I had taken you with me to Heuco Mundo, Aizen would have found us immediately."

All anger faded as Ichigo focussed on the more important matter at hand.

"So you went to Heuco Mundo?"

"Yes."

"What happened? Did you find anything out?"

"Yes." Toshiro sighed and sat cross legged on the ground. Ichigo followed suit. "It took me nine days, but I found out most of Aizen's plans. It seems he originally wanted to take the power of the zampakutos. However the obvious flaw was that he could not kill the soul reapers because then their power would disappear too. So it seems he came up with his current solution to keep them comatose. But it appears that is all he able to do. He has a device, something he created with the hogyoku, that is keeping everyone perfectly preserved and perfectly imprisoned in their own bodies but in doing so he cannot activate their powers."

"But all the other people in the soul society, they don't have zampakuto's how come they are still asleep?"

"It's the balance. It's the same reason new departed souls cannot pass on to the soul society. With the soul reapers out of the picture, the balance of the universe is thrown off. The dimensions themselves are reacting to what Aizen's done."

"So Aizen screwed everything up and he failed to get what he wanted."

"If he truly thought that, he would have destroyed the zampakutos long ago, and their masters along with them."

"Then what?"

"Our original assumption was correct. Aizen wants power, and since he can't get it in the way he originally wanted, he's moved on to plan B."

"Hypnosis."

Toshiro nodded. "He has already succeeded to some extent. The spiritual pressure of the zampakutos was...twisted. He has not completed the job but they are confused, lost in darkness and screaming for help."

Toshiro's eyes fell to the grass and he gripped his own hilt tightly.

"And Aizen has no idea you were there?"

"I concealed my spiritual pressure completely. However, I did leave evidence of my presence." He let go of his sword and Ichigo saw the pain in his features for the first time. His eyes fell to the sword arm and he saw a thin trail of blood seeping past the black fabric at the captain's wrist.

"Toshiro, why didn't you say something?"

The little captain ignored him but could not suppress the a small gasp as Ichigo forced his arm away from his body to reveal the soaked fabric all underneath his arm and open gashes along his ribs.

"We have to get back to Urahara's."

"Ichigo. If Aizen knows I got in, he may go the Soul Society."

"Then I'll go."

"No."

"Toshiro, you can't go like this."

"Ichigo, he might also come here."

The young man's face tensed as he looked at the captain. "What exactly happened?"

"It couldn't be helped. There were some arrancars...I couldn't let them live once they saw me. One was a little stronger than I thought." he said glancing at his side. "They are gone, nothing left, and I did not allow any of my spiritual pressure to leak out. But someone might notice them missing."

"Arrancars fight all the time, I'm sure they'll just think they killed each other." Ichigo reassured, pulling Toshiro to his feet.

"We can only hope."

"Come on, Tessai will fix you up."

...

Ichigo ended up calling Orihime after pulling Toshiro's robes away and discovering just how deep the wounds were. He was unconscious by the time she arrived and remained asleep for several hours after she was done. Ichigo could only imagine what he'd gone through in the last ten days.

When he woke, he found Ichigo once again at his bedside.

"What is the plan then? You must have something if you came back."

Toshiro sat up, flexed his arm and found everything to be working fine. His robes had been ruined and someone had redressed him in a plain white t-shirt and shorts. His inspection of himself finished, he answered Ichigo's question.

"As far as I can tell, if the device is destroyed, the soul reapers will wake up. But I do not think destroying the device will reverse what damage has already been done. Who knows what state they'd be in. And the other problem is getting the zampakutos back from Heuco Mundo. We might be able to destroy the machine, but getting all those weapons back will be impossible."

"Simple, kill Aizen."

"No. If I thought we could, I would. If I thought it was possible, I would have finished things in Heuco Mundo while I was there. But if I had and failed, you would have been left completely alone, and you too, would have fallen when Aizen finally came for you."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"I'm serious Ichigo. We have a responsibility. That's why we can't go to Heuco Mundo until we have a solid plan."

Ichigo raised ae eyebrow. "_We_?"

"Yes Ichigo. I'm not stupid, I know I can't win this battle on my own. I'm going to teach you to control that spiritual pressure of yours. But before you agree to come, you must know that you might have to– "

"Of course I would. They're my friends too you know."

"It may be the price to pay to set them free. I just had to be sure."

Their eyes met and each warrior took a moment to read the other's soul. There was resolve in both sets of eyes, in both hearts and in both minds.

"Okay," Toshiro said, finally turning his teal eyes away. " Then let's start training."


	9. Chapter 9

Golden eyes opened to the sideways world of nothing but reflections, sky and the ever-hovering rain clouds. Ichigo searched the glassy world for the embodiment of his soul and quickly found him where he was perched on his tall thin staff.

And then it began again. Hours of concentration and meditation: just sitting, thinking, connecting, communing– a nearly impossible task for the teenage soul reaper. Not that he didn't try. He would do anything to save his friends and that was why he never gave up.

But the whole process went against his nature. Every challenge he'd faced so far had required speed, endurance, and most of all battles. He'd gained all of his powers in the heat of battle or in time-crunched intense training. So to sit down and not fight, not run or sweat or bleed but to think and listen to his own spirit, his own presence on the earth, Ichigo was at a loss.

When he finally opened his eyes to the real world again he saw the tenth division captain glaring back at him.

"Show me what you learned."

"What?"

"Pull in your spiritual pressure."

"I don't know how yet."

"Ichigo, try."

Ichigo sighed, there was no point in arguing. He sucked in his breath and as he did tried to imagine he was sucking in his own power as well. After a moment he looked expectantly to the little captain. He did not look pleased.

"At this rate I can't take you with me."

Ichigo huffed out his breath in disappointment and the room around him shook. He realized with a monochrome of pleasure that he had indeed, managed to hide a significant portion of his powers.

"Now show me what you learned in kido."

Ichigo stood and took his stance. He ran through the most recent spell he'd memorized. "_Disintegrate, you black dog of Rondanini! Look upon yourself with horror and tear out your own throat!_ Bakudo nine: Horin!"

An orange tendril of blazing light formed in the palm of his hand. Toshiro nodded approvingly and Ichigo let the energy dissipate again.

"You are lucky to have Tessai as your master, he's been teaching you well."

"But what's the point? My kido will never stand a chance against Aizen."

"First, never underestimate when a spell can be used, even if it is weak, they have many applications. And secondly, kido is a manipulation of spirit energy. It requires the user to become aware of their own energy, concentrate on it, and shape it to their will. Every time you learn a new spell you gain more control over your own spiritual power. It is all part of the process to learning to conceal it completely."

"I guess. I just feel like I should be doing something more."

"You mean sparring."

"Exactly."

"No, you have to learn this first. There are no battle techniques that I can teach you that will protect you from Aizen better than knowing how to conceal and control your energy."

"But I just need to burn some energy."

Toshiro considered for a moment before shaking his head.

"Not tonight Ichigo, its time I for me to go back." The boy-captain turned to leave but was stopped by Ichigo's hand clamping around his wrist.

"Just stay, tonight. Don't go back."

"I have to."

"You don't. What if it happens tonight? Or tomorrow? What if they wake up, hypnotised and you're all alone? There is nothing we can do for them, you know that. What do you even do there? I know you don't sleep. Just stay here and rest for one night."

"No Ichigo. There are still things that need protecting there. Secrets in the Seireitei that Aizen might decide he wants. Or people. What if I left them alone and returned to find their bodies gone? What if he wants to take them all back to Heuco Mundo with him? We don't know all the details of his plan. Or forget Aizen and ask yourself this: what if another hollow comes, like that one that Uryu killed. What if one single hollow got lose in the Soul Society and began to consume everyone in its path? I cannot leave the Soul Society undefended any longer than I am right now. Good night."

He jerked his hand out of Ichigo's grasp and disappeared out the window. Ichigo could not see him in the dark but stared after where he imagined he'd gone, imaging the little soul reaper all alone in the silent afterlife.

* * *

The now familiar groan of the floor boards in first division was the only sound as Toshiro made his lonely walk through the halls down to the private quarters of the Head Captain. He pushed open the door and sat in the same chair he always chose; not at the Head Captain's bedside but back against one wall near the window where one could see for many miles, all the way to the wall of the Seireitei and beyond.

"We don't have much time left, I'm not sure he'll make it. I will go alone if I have to, but his strength would give us much greater chances of at least surviving long enough to shut down the experiment."

Toshiro sighed and sunk deeper into the chair, never letting his eyes leave the window.

"I have sat here every night trying to decide what you would say and I think I finally figured it out. It was hard, because the thought of if leaves a bad taste in my mouth but then, some of the orders I have taken from you have done the same, no disrespect intended Head Captain, but that is why I think it might be what you would say.

Of course I want to save you all. Of course I want to shut down Aizen's plans, take back your zampakutos and reverse whatever damage has been done but the chances of that are very small. There is one hope though, Tessai. His name has been erased from our records along with much of the records on Urahara and since they were soul reapers before my time I don't know much about them. But I do know that Tessai is a kido master. I would ask him to join us if he didn't have to defend the human world. But he showed me the forbidden spell for spatial displacement, forgive me sir, but it is my only option if I want to bring all the zampakutos back. This way, even if I die or don't make it back myself, hopefully the zampakuto will be sent back to Tessai who is probably the only person left who would know how to reverse the damage, if it is possible. And that way if the soul reapers wake up confused, they won't have weapons to harm themselves with."

Toshiro took a moment to play out the plan in his head, trying to convince himself it was possible, not wanting to say out loud the contingency plan, even if it was only him who could hear it.

"But if the plan fails there is only one option left. I cannot let Aizen gain an army such as ours. I cannot watch all of you become his slaves. And I cannot put the world of the living in danger just to spare you. So, if all else fails, I will have to destroy them all– all the zampakutos in Heuco Mundo. That would sever Aizen's link over you, you'd all wake up and as far as I can tell any brainwashing done to the weapons would no longer carry over to the owner. Everyone would be free but with no zampakutos and I would be responsible for the destruction of the Gotei Thirteen, for the rupture of countless souls. Would it be justified?"

Toshiro listened to the silence for a long while before sighing deep.

"Please forgive me if I chose wrong. But in the years that I have served you, you have always guided me in the right path, even if I could not see it. Every decision you make is for the protection of our world, the world of the living, or for the sake of balance between the dimensions. That is why I believe this is the path you would chose, so I will follow it and hope it will take me to where I want to be. I will see you when I reach the end, Captain."

* * *

Toshiro took his time as he walked to the twelfth division. He went through each of the barracks, checking on all the soul reapers even though he knew there would be no change. He couldn't help but pause a little longer on particular faces, Momo, Rangiku, the members of his own squad and even a few people that annoyed him when they were awake but for whom he would give anything to see wake up now.

He couldn't help but feel the darkness in his heart increase with every step he took into the depths of the twelfth division lab. He sat at the terminal and began is nightly work. But tonight he would finish, finally. He had discovered Kurotsuchi's research into the Garganta.

The last time he'd opened it himself, it had taken nearly an entire day to reach the palace and another day to get back. This time he wanted to open one closer to the palace if not inside it and be able to open one back home at anytime to give them the best chance at survival if they could not use the kido spell for spatial displacement. He'd found the necessary chant and now he'd finally pieced together the last calculations of exactly how to channel the energy.

If Kanamen Tossen and Gin Ichimaru figured it out he was damned sure he could do it too. But to be safe, he had finished Kurotsuchi's plans on a device that would open the Garaganta almost automatically, just incase Ichigo survived and he did not. He could not leave the teen stranded. Toshiro recorded the last of the information and gathered up the remaining materials he needed to complete the device. If he was lucky, he would finish before dawn and have it ready to go when he met Ichigo for their next training session.

Toshiro set everything he needed in a bag along with the device and prepared to leave for the surface when a chilling sensation ran through him. He would not have called it fear but it was a combination of shock and dread.

Somehow, in his fatigue and eagerness to finish his task he had failed to notice something very important, something he saw every time he came down the steps to the lab. Two bodies were always there to greet him, carefully cushioned and blanketed on the floor of the lab, never moving, never changing, her face expressionless while his was stuck in that twisted expression of fear.

And now, returning to the stairs, Toshiro found only empty blankets and pillows where Nemy and her captain should be.

His whole body stiffened but he could feel nothing, no one. He listened for the faintest sign of life, peered into the dim light but still nothing. He looked back to the blankets but there was no doubt, their bodies had not faded, they were not dead, the blankets had been thrown aside, the pillows flung out of the way.

Then all suspicions were confirmed when the eery voice rippled out of the darkness, beyond the circle of light around the computer terminals.

"Captain Hitsugaya. Did you really think he didn't notice you? You captured his soldiers, tortured them for information and killed them without mercy. No matter how much you tried, you could not contain their rage and fear filled riatsu."

Toshiro spun. By some trick of the dark lab he could not pinpoint the location of the voice that could belong to none other than the twelfth division captain.

"He's brain washed you Mayuri. Don't let Aizen manipulate you."

"Manipulate _me?_ The way you acted out in that desert its obvious you've allowed Aizen to manipulate _you._ He made you so lonely, so fearful that you resorted to the most brutal and barbaric means of acquiring information. Since when have you ever taken such measures of your own free will? What would your partner say?"

"What I did was necessary. Now snap out of it Mayuri!"

Toshiro was now literally spinning on the spot, Hyorinmaru drawn, the bag clutched under one arm, just waiting for the attack.

"Oh Hitsugaya, so young, so naive."

"Shut up! You can't win Kurotsuchi, you know you can't! I have Hyronmaru, you are weaponless."

"Like I said, so naive."

Toshiro blocked the attack from Nemu just as the lights went out. He was completely blind in the dark and for some reason he still couldn't feel their spiritual pressure. Even if they were containing it, he should be able to sense them at this range and in the heat of an attack.

"Hado 31!" Toshiro let the red energy build but did not cast it. Instead he slipped the bag over his shoulder and kept the spell hovering in his free hand, giving him enough light to defend himself against Nemu's attacks. Her custom body held many surprises and he found himself on the defensive on occasion but mostly because he did not want to use a full attack on her.

His mercy was his downfall. He allowed himself to be distracted enough by her to let Kurotsuchi get a clear shot from behind. Sharp nailed fingers grabbed him by the back of the neck preventing him from dodging Nemu's hand turned drill. There was a sickening, twisting rip of fabric and skin as her bare hand dug into the flesh of his shoulder before he was forced to release the Hado spell on her. She fell back but Kurotsuchi was already on him.

Somewhere a light flickered back to life because he was able to faintly see Kurotsuchi's maniacal features when he struck the floor and the twelfth division captain quickly straddled him, pinning his sword hand to the ground with incredible strength for some one who's spirit was no doubt in turmoil– or perhaps his did not really care. Whatever the reason, Toshiro found himself in a difficult position.

"Get off of me."

"No, Aizen has no use for trouble makers like you. Time to die."

"Sorry, Captain Kurotsuchi. BANKAI!"

"...so naive."

Toshiro felt the swell of chilling power around his body and the other captain fell clear of him but showed no sign of backing down. The little Captain hesitated for a moment before diving in hopes of only incapacitating the other. Knowing that the captain could survive nearly the complete destruction of his body, Toshiro plunged his sword through Kurotsuchi's thigh, letting the ice spread over both legs, anchoring him to the ground. But even as the last wisps of frost spread onto the floor Toshiro felt the sharp intrusion of a foreign object in his arm. He looked down to see a needle, long and large, jabbed deep into his forearm and watched helplessly as Kurotsuchi pumped the clear substance inside of him.

"Don't forget Hitsugaya. We are an expendable army. If Aizen wants you dead, he has no problems killing us in the process. You're naivete is your downfall."

The words only distantly registered in Toshiro's mind as reality faded to dark.


	10. Chapter 10

Ichigo flopped back on his bed exhausted. He had no idea kido could take so much out of him. He'd just gone through all the kido spells Tessai had shown him and the master was pleased. He knew that he'd made leaps and bounds today and he was almost excited to show the little captain. But if Toshiro came back to find him lounging on his bed the amount of progress he made would mean nothing. He forced himself to sit lotus style on the sheets and focus on pulling in his spiritual pressure.

This time it felt different. He was tired from the kido but he felt like he could almost touch his own riatsu as is brushed passed his finger tips on its way back to his body. It took a long time for all the energy to pull itself in but finally, he thought he had it. Unfortunately he really needed someone else to tell him.

Ichigo cracked an eye and looked around the room, waiting for the white head to pop through his window. He hadn't come back this morning but that wasn't particularly odd, he often got caught up in his research but he always came by at some point to check on Ichigo's progress.

"Maybe he actually fell asleep." Ichigo muttered to himself but the second he let his concentration slip his spiritual pressure exploded out of him and he felt his house shake. His father started shouting something and Yuzu screamed from her bedroom but Ichigo ignored it, disappointed in himself.

"Dammit." He lay back on his bed in frustration but heard the window sliding back and sat up again quickly.

"Ichigo." It was not the white haired captain but Uryu. "What happened?" He dropped into the room and stared at the mess that resulted from the shock wave of Ichigo's power.

"I lost concentration."

Uryu's face changed slightly. "Oh. Very good Ichigo."

"What? I messed up."

"No. I was on my way over here because I felt your riatsu drop to almost zero. I thought something had happened to you."

Some of the frustration left Ichigo. "Really? I couldn't tell, I was waiting for Toshiro but then I lost concentration and it all came out again."

"He hasn't been here today? Tessai said he thought you two were going to spar after training."

"I was hoping we might but he didn't come back this morning. He probably got lost in his research on the Garganta."

"Maybe you should call him. This is pretty significant progress."

"I guess. But if he's busy he won't answer. Its so annoying." Ichigo pulled his soul pager out of his robes and dialled. It rang several times and he really did not expect an answer but then there was a click and he could tell the captain had picked up.

"Hey Toshiro, where are you?"

"Hmmm? Toshiro? Oh he's a bit busy right now."

Uryu watched Ichigo's face change before his eyes. First it was shock, one slow jaw drop, then he was clutching the pager with both hands as if the voice on the other end might slip away.

"Captain Kurotsuchi?"

The voice on the other end was shouting at someone else. "Its for you little captain! I think you should take it."

Ichigo could hear a weird echo on the other end, as if the speaker were in a cave. There was a scrapping noise and then Kurotsuchi returned to the phone.

"Ichigo Kurosaki."

"Yes..."

"See you soon."

There was a click and Ichigo dropped the pager back onto the bed and met Uryu's eyes. He already had the soul badge in his hand and in an instant his body was on the bed and the room was empty.

* * *

Ice shattered down on Toshiro's head, stirring him back to painful consciousness. Nemu was still hacking through the crystal sphere that protected him but it was something else that caught his eye. He could just make out Kurotsuchi's face against his ice dome, holding something small and glowing against the frozen surface.

"Its for you little captain!" he just barely made out the words before he squeezed his blade and forced a little more ice to escape, thickening the ice that shielded his nearly paralysed body from the Captain and lieutenant of twelfth division. His thoughts began to drift again but then the electric pain of his left arm pulled him back. He looked down at the frozen limb, dead now, no use, but containing the poison that was just waiting to seep into the rest of his body and kill him.

Already too much had gotten into this veins, he probably wouldn't survive much longer. He hardly even remembered freezing his own arm to try to save himself. There had been a long darkness and then he'd woken in a melting sphere of ice with the two soul reapers hacking away, trying to reach him.

Since then he'd been in and out of consciousness, always waking when he needed to re-freeze his arm. Even now the pain was intensifying, the poison pushing its way past the congealed blood.

"Hyroinmaru..." Toshiro jerked in pain as more ice sealed itself around the limb, reaching just slightly higher than before, close to his shoulder now. He managed to drag himself to a sitting position with his right arm, his legs had failed him hours ago. He could move them slightly but he knew he could not walk.

The grating noise of Nemu's drilling arm began again and Toshiro fought off the sleep that always came. Every time he closed his eyes he thought it was for the last time. How could he have let this happen? How could he fail so miserably, the one captain left for everyone to depend on. He was pathetic.

_No master. You have fought well. Now wait, and you will fight again soon."_

"Ichigo." the word escaped in a puff of breath that lingered in the sub zero air for a moment before dissipating. He didn't know what to hope for. He couldn't leave this burden for the boy to face alone. But if Ichigo came to save him, he risked getting killed himself.

_There is a reason you've been waiting for him. You know he has a role to play in this battle, he will not fall here if he comes for you._

"It would only take one mistake. I made it, he could too."

_You were alone. Ichigo has another power._

"What's that?"

_His friends._

* * *

"I'm not letting you go alone."

Ichigo looked back over his shoulder at Uryu.

"You know you can't come. You have to stay here in case there's trouble."

"Then Orihime and Chad will want to go with you."

"What, you called them?"

"They have to be warned if we are both gone."

"Damn you."

"So who will it be? Me or them? You know only I have the speed necessary to follow you."

"Fine. You can come. But be careful. If something happens to me–"

"I know, I'll come back. But with me watching your back, you'll be fine."

Ichigo met the eyes of his companion. He never knew where he stood with the quincy, they were reluctant allies an even more reluctant friends, but the events of the last few weeks had pushed all of that aside. He knew he could depend on the other no matter what.

"Thanks, Uryu."

"Okay, let's get going."

Tessai opened the Senkeimon and two stepped through.

* * *

Ichigo knew where to go. There was no doubt that he would find the awakened soul reapers in the twelfth division lab. The problem when he got there, was how to get in. He met a wall of solid ice at the very top of the stairs.

"This is going to slow us down." Uryu muttered.

Ichigo put a hand to it and pushed. He frowned.

"Maybe not. This is not as strong as usual, Toshiro must be weakened."

He took a step back and raised his sword. It only took one blast from Zangetsu to break through.

"He must really be in bad shape." Uryu said as Ichigo hurried down the steps. They had to repeat the task several times, discovering that there were a number of ice barricades along the way. It seemed like the little captain had attempted to freeze the whole place but large pockets had been left untouched. At least it made it easier for them to reach him.

When they finally made it to the bottom level they found the entire room blanketed in snow and at the centre was a dome of ice. It was very dark but the computer consoles still lit the room enough for them to see the shadowed figure inside the half sphere.

"Hang on Toshiro!" Ichigo raised his sword but Uryu stopped him.

"Ichigo, he did that on purpose, like he was protecting himself from something."

Ichigo lowered his zampakuto and looked around.

"Kurotsuchi?" There was no reply and no sign of him.

"I sense nothing." Uryu said and Ichigo returned to the dome.

"Then I say we grab Toshiro and get out of here."

This time he was more cautious and instead of just blasting the ice he dug the tip of his sword carefully into the frosted surface.

"Stay still!" He called, unsure whether the captain could even hear him. Using the control he'd been learning, he let just a fraction of his spiritual pressure slide down the blade and into the ice, splintering it along one side. He withdrew the blade and pushed against the weakened spot. It fell away easily and he stepped into what was left of the dome to kneel next to the little captain. His eyes were still open but he did not speak and his body shook not from the freezing cold but from pain. One shoulder bled heavily and the other arm was frozen from the fingers right up to the shoulder. Ichigo reached to touch it but was startled by Toshiro's soft voice.

"Don't."

"What happened?"

"P-poison. Kuort-su-chi..."

"Ichigo, let's go."

Uryu leaned in and saw the state of the captain. He recognized what Hitsugaya had tried to do in freezing his arm but he also seemed to understand that it had not been enough.

"We need to hurry."

Ichigo didn't argue. He scooped up Toshiro and then noticed the bag and took that too.

"Okay, let's–" Uryu's words died on his lips. He fell forward, his back bleeding and the slim figure of Nemu appeared in his place, her arm soaked with his blood.

"Shit." Ichigo set Toshiro and the bag back down and tried to counter Nemu without hurting her. It was a challenge.

"Careful Ichigo." Uryu struggled to his feet behind him and generated his bow, looking for the other. He knew well the challenges of fighting both the captain of squad twelve and his lieutenant but now they were not his enemies by choice but dolls that Aizen would sacrifice on a whim. It was a different game.

Uryu heard Ichigo grunt in pain and saw blood.

"I don't know what to do." He called to Uryu. "I can't stop her without hurting her."

"That's the whole point!" The whining voice sounded right beside Uryu. Even with his quincy speed, he was not fast enough. He let fly an arrow but it whizzed past the captain and his hand was around his throat.

"Uryu!" But Ichigo was having enough trouble dodging Nemu without striking back.

"You have to chose boy." Kurotsuchi sneered as he squeezed the life out of Uryu. "Sacrifice us or sacrifice yourselves."

"Neither is an option." Ichigo said, spinning toward the captain as he sent Nemu flying with a well placed kick. She would not be down for long.

"What will you do when you have to fight someone you really care about, say, Rukia Kuchiki?"

"Shut up." Ichigo threw himself into Kurotsuchi, trying to pull him off Uryu without hurting him too badly but he wasn't succeeding.

"You're going to have to use that sword boy. What will you do? Cut off my arms? I'm Aizen's puppet, you know I have no control."

Ichigo gripped Zangetsu but didn't swing. He was torn.

"Do it." Uryu wheezed.

"Dammit."

"Too late." Kurotsuchi hurled Uryu into Ichigo, sending them both sprawling and before they realized, Nemu was on them. She drove her hand into Ichigo's stomach. He grabbed her wrist to stop her progress but her whole arm began to spin like a drill. He roared in agony as Kurotsuchi laughed and a barely conscious Uryu struggled to help his ally.

_I can't let this happen. I can't let these children die in front of me because I'm too weak to do anything._ Toshiro screamed in his mind.

"_Master, you're dying."_

_I know. Help me, Hyronmaru._

Toshiro clutched his blade close to this body and used it to help him stand. He leaned back heavily on the ice dome, almost certain his legs could not support him. But something was burning inside him: a rage, at Aizen and at his own weakness. He would not let it all end here.

"Who are you kidding Hitsugaya? You're long dead. That poison will just keep leaking into your body until you can't move a single muscle, not even to breath." Kurotsuchi sneered.

Captian Hitsugaya said nothing but slowly took his weight off the blade and swung it up to rest against the shoulder of the frozen limb. It wouldn't take much, just enough pressure and it would shatter.

"You'll cut off your arm even though you know its already too late for you?"

"No. I'd cut off my arm to save them." Kurotsuchi's eyes widened as Toshiro pulled back his blade and slammed it against his shoulder with as much force as he could muster. He felt the ice pull away from his body but there was no pain, the limb had been dead for many hours and it was nothing more than ice when it fell from his body. Even still, the shock to his system and the disorientation of losing a limb set him off balance enough to bring him to his knees. He looked back up to Kurotsuchi and the other read his intentions in his eyes. "Screw you Aizen."

Kurotsuchi screamed and ran at the little captain, Nemu left the humans and tried to aid her captain. But neither could challenge Hitsugaya's power. With no more poison seeping into him, he raised Hyorinmaru toward the two brainwashed soul reapers and called on the rest of his strength.

"Thousand year ice prison!"

Both figures were stopped instantly. Gigantic pillars of ice closed around them, swirling closer and closer until both were obscured completely. There was one high pitched scream before the pillars touched and became solid ice, trapping their victims inside.

Only heavy breathing could be heard in the silence that followed. Uryu held his hands over Ichigo's stomach, the teen pale but still awake. Toshiro dropped Hyorinmaru and clutched his shoulder unconsciously.

"You killed them." Ichigo finally breathed.

"Doubtful. They both have unique bodies that are almost impossible to destroy. I am sure they will revive when it is safe to unfreeze them. But I am afraid the same technique could very well be fatal for others."

"Then we need to leave, now." Uryu said.

"What if..." Toshiro's voice had become weak again, he was fading quickly. Ichigo nodded and took over the pressure on his stomach so Uryu could get closer to the little captain.

"What?"

"What if the rest of them wake up? Aizen could make them kill each other. He could send them to your world he could–"

"I get it. But you won't last much longer and Ichigo needs help. We have to get back."

"The bag..." Uryu picked up the black bag and tossed it over his shoulder. Toshiro spasmed and he knew death was close. "I don't think I can make the gate safe, you'll have to–"

"Run for it, I know, I'm used to it now." Uryu didn't hesitate any longer. He picked up Toshiro and helped Ichigo to his feet. The teen soul reaper was in rough shape but he'd fought through many injuries in his short life and he could endure the pain long enough to get home. He hung off Uryu's shoulder and the three made their way through the surface and to the Senkeimon.

Hitsugaya had just enough strength to open the permanent link between their worlds before passing out completely. "Hold on everyone." Uryu gripped the captain tight as well as knotting a fist in the back of Ichigo's robes to ensure he would not be too slow. He jumped into the black tunnel and the Soul Society and all its sleeping inhabitants became nothing more than a distant light behind them.


	11. Chapter 11

The world was nothing but fuzzy images for a few moments while Ichigo blinked back to consciousness. The first thing he saw clearly was a tuft of intensely red hair and for a moment he expected to see Renji but when he tilted his head he realized it was the shop boy, Jinta.

"Finally! You sure do like to sleep." He didn't waste any more time with Ichigo and stomped out of the room calling for someone.

"Would you like some water?" Ichigo jumped at the timid voice, he hadn't even seen Ururu standing in the corner.

"Ah, yes, thanks." He accepted the glass and sat carefully. The wound in his gut was well bandaged but it had not been closely examined. Ururu seemed to notice his stare and explained.

"They've been trying all night to save him. There wasn't much time to heal you once your life was out of danger."

Ichigo stiffened and clambered to his feet. Ururu yelled protests at him but he stumbled half naked down the hall until he heard voices. He pulled open the door and Orihime's tired face looked up at him in surprise.

"Ichigo." She smiled at him but it was a sort of sad smile and he looked down at the small body underneath her hands.

"I don't understand. You can heal anything."

"It's the poison. I can heal the damage but not remove it. I have to wait until it passes out of his system, otherwise it will just attack him all over again."

Ichigo slumped to the floor on the opposite side of the captain. Uryu and Chad were sitting off to the side too, the quincy also heavily bandaged for his wounds in the back. His eyes fell back to Toshiro.

"You sure do cause a lot of trouble."

"We're all in trouble now." Uryu's voice floated to him. Ichigo was tired and didn't want to think about their troubles beyond this room but he looked up, waiting for the rest of the grim pronouncement that was sure to come. "Toshiro was right. If Aizen wakes up more soul reapers, he could start using them to kill each other just for his own amusement. Or he could send them here. Whatever he choses, it won't be good."

"Maybe he can't wake them up yet." All eyes turned to the deep voice and Chad continued in his slow but well thought out manner. "He knew where Captain Hitsugaya would be. He chose to wake up the captain and the lieutenant of squad twelve first for a reason."

"They were the closest to his target." Ichigo added. "So he had to be selective. That means maybe its taking a long time to brainwash the zampakutos."

"But I thought Toshiro said he saw them all being experimented on." Orihime added.

"Maybe experiments, but this was the first real success and its taken him more than a month to get this far." Ichigo was hopeful but then he met Uryu's gaze.

"But now he has the process perfected. Sorry Ichigo, it may not happen as quickly as we feared, but its happening. We may have a day, we may have a week, but soon enough more soul reapers are going to wake up."

"Then we have to get to Heuco Mundo as soon as possible." Ichigo sighed but he didn't have long to dwell in his thoughts. The door slid open behind him and Tessai entered with a tray of medical supplies.

"Ichigo. Jinta told me you were awake, you should be resting, I will tend to you soon."

"What is that?" Ichigo asked, completely ignoring the instructions from the only adult in the room.

"I believe this will neutralize the poison and allow Captain Hitsugaya to finish healing."

"Really?" Orihime exclaimed breathlessly. Her hands were shaking slightly but the golden orb remained firm.

"Yes miss." He knelt next to Toshiro and pushed a needle into a large vial and pulled back on the plunger, sucking all of the liquid into the syringe.

"Are you sure you can put that much in him?" Ichigo asked, his medical heritage kicking in.

"I could not identify the poison exactly. This will counter almost anything but it requires a large dose. I'm afraid he may not feel very well after but he will no longer be in danger."

Without further explanation, Tessai pushed the needle into Toshiro's only arm and Ichigo winced as he watch all of the liquid disappear. It took a few minutes but soon Orihime's face brightened and the small figure in her sphere of light stirred.

"I can feel it, his body is healing more rapidly now." She continued pouring her power into the boy and soon the wound on his shoulder closed and eyes began to flutter open. He just got them focussed when he felt the most incredible sensation on his left side and looked to see his own arm reappearing.

Orihime dropped her hands in utter exhaustion but her face glowed with joy. She'd kept the captain alive and even restored his arm.

"Orihime," Toshiro's voice was soft but he reached up to her with his freshly healed hand. She took it and smiled.

"I'm glad you're back." She nearly wept and he smiled appreciatively at her before his eyes shut again and he fell asleep. She gently dropped his hand.

"Who's next?" she asked looking between Uryu and Ichigo but both boys held up their hands in protest at once.

"No way Orihime. You need to rest, then you can worry about us."

She tried to protest but there was no denying how tired she was. Chad helped her to her feet and lead her to a room to rest. The danger passed, Ichigo allowed Tessai to guide him back to his room to have some more healing before he too drifted back to sleep.

* * *

_Something brushed past Toshiro's leg. He opened his eyes and sat up to find a black cat with deeply intelligent eyes staring back at him._

"_Youruichi? But I was sure you were in the Soul Society when Aizen attacked."_

"_She was."_

"_Then who are you?"_

"_How can you not know me? You are my master's captain."_

"_Haineko?"_

"_You must save us."_

"_I'm trying."_

"_They'll take her next. What will you do? Will you fight my master? Would you kill your own lieutenant to save the humans? You chose them over your own kind already."_

"_No. They'll revive once I unfreeze them."_

"_What if it had been Rangiku. What if it had been any other soul reaper that couldn't survive."_

"_I did what I had to do."_

"_You chose humans over us."_

"_Why are you saying this?"_

"_When you come to Heuco Mundo will it be to save us, or destroy us?"_

"_Haineko..."_

_The black cat morphed before his eyes into his lieutenant. Rangiku leaned in close to him, half seductive, half threatening, just like a cat._

"_Will you destroy me captain? Will you take away all that I am just to get your revenge on Aizen?"_

"_No, to save everyone."_

"_To save the humans you mean."_

"_Rangiku–"_

"_Shh." she placed two fingers on his lips and leaned so that her mouth was just next to his ear. "I know your heart better than anyone. You can't lie to me. The only reason you might have to destroy us all is because you're too weak to do what you really need to do: kill Aizen. If you could do that you could save us all, humans, soul reapers, no more tough decisions. But you can't, can you?"_

_Toshiro shoved the woman off of himself and stood._

"_Who are you?"_

"_Captain I'm hurt." But the voice was not Rangiku's, not really. His lieutenant would never act like this._

"_Get out of my head."_

"_But that's precisely the problem. This is your head, your thoughts, your imagination. You dreamed this, because you know that it's your weakness that is preventing you from doing what is necessary."_

_Toshiro suddenly felt a terrible rage at the woman before him but if her words we true then the rage was really directed at himself. He calmed down and shut his eyes._

"_It doesn't work that way Captain. Even when you wake up, it will all still be true."_

Toshiro's eyes shot open and he sat up in the dark room. It took him a second to realize what was coming and he ran out of the shop just in time to hurl in the bushes. It took a long time for the nausea to pass and he sat back shaking when he'd finished. He couldn't see much on the cloudy night be he felt the presence of the human.

"Tessai gave you something to counter the drugs but he said it might make you sick." Chad bent and offered Toshiro water which he took and gulped down immediately to sooth his raw throat.

"Thanks."

The teen nodded and sat down a respectful distance from Toshiro. The small captain could not decide whether he was going to be sick again or not so he stayed put for the time being.

"You were talking, in your sleep."

Toshiro had let his head sink against one knee but he looked up at the unexpected comment. He waited for Chad to continue but he didn't.

"What did you hear?"

"Some things I did not understand. But I did understand your plan for when you get to Heuco Mundo."

Toshiro had two plans, one he'd shared with Ichigo, and one he had not. There was no doubt in his mind which one Chad was talking about.

"So now you think I should tell Ichigo? Or have you told him already?"

"No. Its not up to me what you decide."

"Then what?"

"You aren't weak."

Toshiro felt himself flush a little. "Wh-what?"

"It takes courage to sacrifice yourself but even more to risk your friends, even when you know its right. But there is something you haven't considered yet."

"I have considered it but the answer is no."

"It would take the same courage and you would risk fewer friends."

"Its not your risk to take."

Toshiro stood up in an attempt to put an end to the conversation but as he tried to walk away he felt another wave of nausea and disorientation. Before he hit the pavement however, one strong arm caught him by the front of his robes. Chad was still sitting, and holding Toshiro by his collar like that it looked for all the world like he was threatening him, but instead he spoke calmly, solemnly.

"Its always my risk to take when friends lives are on the line." He righted the boy but kept a firm hand on each shoulder. "If your plan fails, please let us take the risk, before you take the last resort."

Toshiro didn't respond. Chad's hands slid from his shoulders but he just stood there, staring down on the quiet teen. His dream rang through his mind as well as Hyorinmaru's words and he knew that boy had reason. How long had the other captain's been telling him that Ichigo was the only one who could stop Aizen because he was the only one who hadn't seen the power of his zampakuto? And yet the whole shop was full of people who had never been exposed to that power, people who could see Aizen for who he really was.

Toshiro dropped to his knees.

"I can't ask them."

"You don't have to. They'll volunteer."

"No." Toshiro looked up at Chad. "Not until we have to. Not until I have no more options."

"You don't." The voice came from the shop door and Uryu came out. "Whatever path you chose, Aizen will still be there, you will never know when he'll attack. He could wipe out the whole Soul Society while they're defenceless. Killing him is the only way. And we are the only people who can help you do it."

"This is insane." Toshiro murmured.

"Look at your left arm. Now tell me you don't need us."

The captain raised the hand before his eyes. The healing had been flawless. Chad and Uryu thought he would relent but his eyes flashed in the cold moonlight and the hand became a fist.

"No."

"Toshiro–"

"I said no! You think just because we have the will we can defeat Aizen? You are children and he, he is a monster! There is no more time to lose, I must get the zampakutos before the monster can become even more powerful."

Toshiro jumped to his feet and disappeared before their eyes.

* * *

Ichigo shivered as he got closer to the pond. He knew this place from when he was a child but he'd never seen it quite like this, especially when it was still summer. Frost covered everything, the grass crunched beneath his feet and everything shone white and bright against the black of night. He squatted down next the trembling captain who sat at the water's edge, staring into its obsidian surface. He was clearly still suffering from the effects of Tessai's antidote.

"Chad and Uryu told me about your conversation earlier."

It had been a few hours. At first they had all feared Toshiro had run off to Heuco Mundo by himself but they'd quickly pinpointed his unstable spiritual pressure, unmoving and not far. Ichigo had waited until Tessai had finished healing him to make his move.

"Are you alright?" Toshiro asked hoarsely. Ichigo guessed he'd been sick again.

"I'll feel even better in a day or so but I'm alright. You?"

A sigh was all he got as a response.

"Why Toshiro? Why are you denying the only chance we have."

"I'm not. I know it might come down to that in the end but Ichigo, the chances we'd succeed–"

"We aren't stupid, we know."

"No, Ichigo, they don't. Maybe you do, you've fought many battles by now, but how can you expect Orihime, Chad, those children from the shop, to understand what it means to die in battle, to face the worst sort of evil and be cut down by it? If its between them and the world, of course we must try. But you know Aizen, you know his strength. We can't just go after him, we have to neutralize his hold in the soul reapers first. Then, if we die, at least we'll have restored the balance and there will still be hope."

"I guess."

"Ichigo. You've won so many impossible battles and your friends have good reason to believe in you. But we cannot take the risk of falling to Aizen _and_ leaving him with an army of soul reapers. I have to know you understand that. I have to know that you won't go off to fight Aizen instead of doing what we really need to do."

Ichigo let out a long breath but nodded. "I won't. We'll save the soul reapers, but then you know we'll have to face him. He won't leave us alone after that."

"I know."

"Then when do we leave?"

"As soon as I can. I'm sorry Ichigo. I can't wait now that they're reviving."

"Toshiro–"

"Ichigo, I would take you with me, but Aizen will find us as soon as we go through."

"Tosrhio–"

"There's no point in–"

"TOSHIRO! Just watch." Ichigo straightened his back and breathed in. Small ripples formed on the surface of the water and soon miniature waves were lapping at the grassy shore. Toshiro's frost lifted and floated in the air, swirling around them. Then all was still and silence rang through the night. Ichigo opened his eyes and smiled at the little captain who stared back at him amazed. The shock faded into a satisfied smile and Toshiro stood up grinning wryly.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, you may just be the most stubborn soul reaper I've ever met. I'm glad you'll be at my side."


	12. Chapter 12

They wasted no more time. Toshiro took one more night to recover from the poison and the antidote and by then Orihime had recovered enough to finish healing Ichigo's wounds. Everyone gathered for a last meal together and one last chance to go over their plans.

"Take these." Uryu handed Ichigo and Toshiro each a small, round device. He showed them how to use it. "It's a radio, but for you it will only work one way. If you push this bud into your ear you'll be able to hear us when we talk into our radios and Aizen shouldn't be able to tell."

"Where did you get this?" Toshiro eyed it closely.

"The electronics store. You soul reapers could probably benefit from some of our human technologies."

Toshiro did not respond to the jab but nodded approvingly, pushing it into his ear. "No spiritual pressure involved then. This is good."

"It won't have a very far range though. Only about a kilometre, but that doesn't matter, since we'll need to stay close anyway."

"Wait, stay close when?" Ichigo cut in.

"If and when Aizen follows you back from Heuco Mundo. You're sending the zampakutos back here and you are returning here, if all goes well, but Aizen will not leave you alone once you cross dimensions. We will station ourselves around Karakura Town and feed you information. As long as Aizen never shows you his powers, you shouldn't need it Ichigo, but for Toshiro, we must be his eyes. Otherwise he won't know what is real or what is Aizen's illusion."

"We'll be careful." Orihime said before Ichigo could even open his mouth.

"Alright." the teen sighed.

"Then we're ready." Toshiro set down his tea cup and stood. Ichigo followed suit then everyone rose and followed them to the basement. Toshiro pulled out the device he'd made in Kurotsuchi's lab and set it on the ground.

"What is this?" Ichigo asked.

"It is to convert the power of my zampakuto to allow it to open the Garganta. You should be able to do it too, in case something happens to me. It won't take long to open, you should conceal your spiritual pressure now."

"Okay." Ichigo took a deep breath and the loose dirt rolled along the training grounds to him, like ball bearings to a magnet. When he was done he sighed deep and looked to the little captain. Tosihro nodded and turned back to Chad, Orihime, Uryu, Tessai and the two children.

"Thank you, everyone, for your help."

"Good luck." Tessai said bowing.

"We'll be back, soon." Ichigo said with confidence, staring straight at Orihime. She smiled at him but tears were already forming in her eyes.

"We know you will." Chad answered finally. "Good luck."

"Don't do anything stupid." Uryu added, adjusting his glasses. "Don't forget who pays the price if you do."

"I won't." Ichigo replied grimly.

"I won't let him." Toshiro added, pulling Hyorinmaru from his sheath and holding him above the device on the floor. He began whispering the kido incantation and everyone fell silent, feeling the swirl of energy in the room.

Then the cracks appeared in midair and for an instant everyone just stared into the void. Then, with one final look back at their friends, the two last soul reapers disappeared into darkness.

* * *

Toshiro's calculations had been precise. They emerged just metres from the palace wall.

The night air was crisp and cool, they threw their backs against the wall and moved silently in the dark around the perimeter of Aizen's fortress. Quickly Toshiro found the entrance.

Toshiro had explained their path to Ichigo but now that they were sneaking through dark corridors, twisting and turning in every direction, Ichigo was glad he had the Captain to lead him.

They passed several arrancars but with no spiritual pressure they slipped past easily enough, though there were times when they had to wait in shadow and hold their breath. Finally they reached their destination.

"Its just in there." Toshiro's voice was so low it wasn't even a whisper. "Through those doors, but once we make our more we must be fast. Keep them off me until I can complete the spell. You'll have to get close enough to me to transport with us so make sure you don't get pulled far away."

"Okay."

"And Ichigo."

"Yeah?"

"If we fail and there is no other choice– destroy them. Destroy every last zampakuto so Aizen can never have them and our friends will be free."

"Wait what?"

"Let's go." Hitsugaya was already moving and Ichigo had no choice but to follow.

It was just as Toshiro had told him, Ichigo barely had time to take in the scene before the attacks came. He released his pent up spiritual pressure and the resulting wave sent all the arrancars in the vicinity flying, but they wouldn't be down for long. Toshiro took the opportunity and raced toward the pile of zampakutos."

"Try to destroy that machine Ichigo." Toshiro instructed, as he knelt next to the heap and began the chant. He could not break from the spell, it was long and complicated and would drain much of his power but he watched with one eye as the boy freed the zampakuto that was currently in the device and threw it in the pile then took to hacking away at the machine. His blows, however, were deflected by some sort of barrier.

Then the arrancars came. One with pink hair flew toward Toshiro but he could not break the chant. He remained completely motionless as the espada leapt up, aiming to kill, but was met head on by Ichigo. The battle was intense but Toshiro was nearing the completion of the spell and Ichigo had to force his way back to him.

He was met, however, with an immovable force.

"Aizen."

Ichigo had no choice, he had to get to Toshiro so he would have to get by Aizen. He reached for his hollow mask.

Ichigo's hand stayed frozen above his face for a moment before dropping in shock. The orange head fell forward and Ichigo found himself staring at torrents of his own blood running down his chest. Three strikes, Aizen had sliced him three times from hip to neck across his front and he hadn't even seen him. He felt his knees give out but Aizen shot forward again and caught him around the throat, strangling him.

Toshiro was frozen in indecision. He only needed a few more moments to finish the spell but he did not have them if we wished to save Ichigo's life. The whole world depended on their success, the balance of the universe, so his life should mean nothing weighed against that. But somehow Toshiro couldn't swallow the logic. He'd thought he'd come prepared to sacrifice anything, but now he knew he was wrong.

The universe would just have to hold on a little longer.

Toshiro dove at Aizen, swinging Hyorinmaru. Aizen disappeared before he reached him but the little captain managed to catch Ichigo as he collapsed. The world around him swirled and suddenly Ichigo was all he could see, everything else was a blinding white.

"I am impressed, Hitsugaya. You survived that hollow I modified with my own special poison. I was wondering who would be its victim but I guess you turned out to be the lucky one. It took me a while to figure out how you stayed awake but that's why right?"

The voice floated out of nothingness and Toshiro tried to follow it but it seemed to echo from several different locations.

"Oh the boy genius. You had an excellent plan. If only your powers were a little more mature you could have shortened the chant and gotten out of here quicker. But you're still just a child."

"Shut up traitor."

"Ah, don't be scared Toshiro, I've decided not to kill you yet. I'm curious to see what happens when I try my little experiment on waking souls."

"I said shut up!" Toshiro waved Hyorinmaru and ice pelted out into the air all around him.

"Nice try." the voice came right next to his ear and was followed by a swift kick. Toshiro spun far into the air before crashing back to earth. It took a moment for the shock to where off and for him to realize what had just happened.

Warm blood pooled beneath him, his robe soaking up his life force. A sword was part way in his stomach but it was not Aizen's, it was one of the zampakutos from the pile. Still the world was nothing but white but Toshiro slowly and painfully realized he'd landed in the pile of zampakutos and he couldn't move without cutting himself more, especially since he couldn't see them.

"See how your friends hurt you, no matter what you do for them."

"You bastard." Toshiro grit his teeth and pushed himself up. The tips and edges of several blades had already done him a lot of damage on top of the stomach wound but he waded his way out of the pile, slashing his legs until even more blood poured out.

"You don't look so well, Hitsugaya. I think its time you take a rest in one of my spare bedrooms."

Then he could see Aizen. He stumbled and the man caught him by his right wrist, inspecting Hyorinmaru. He ripped the sword from him and threw him back to the ground next to Ichigo.

"I've had so many questions about this blade. But I don't need to know now, I don't care. All I want is for it and you to serve me. Do you think we can handle that?"

Toshiro blinked through the blood that ran into his eyes to look up at the ex-captain but all he saw was the sole of his sandal and then nothing.


	13. Chapter 13

"_So you chose the human after all."_

_The black cat stared at Toshiro once more. He sat slowly in the empty room, the wound in his gut painful and the blood in his eye half blinding him._

"_I will still do what we came here to do."_

"_No, you doomed the whole universe because you're weak and you gave into your emotions. You betrayed your duties as a soul reaper." Haineko arched her back and stepped onto the captain's outstretched legs._ _He winced as her feet became pressure points on his fresh wounds. _

"_Ichigo may be the only one who can defeat Aizen."_

"_No, not anymore. Aizen has already shown him his power. Now there is no one."_

_Toshiro swallowed. Everything in this world seemed real but he knew it was not. However, nothing in his previous dreams had been a lie. _

"_Its true." the cat purred to him. "You have lost all hope of winning."_

"_No. The others–"_

"_Ha! They'll be dead the second Aizen goes through to their world. He'll pinpoint their locations and wipe them out."_

"_You are just the manifestation of my doubts. I don't have to listen to you. The choice I made was the only one." _

"_Really?" The voice was not the cat but boomed from the end of the room. Toshiro's eyes widened in shock as he saw the aged soul reaper enter the room, his staff clunking menacingly with every step he took closer to the boy. Haineko leapt off Toshiro's legs and trotted to the Head Captain's side as Toshiro came shakily to his feet._

"_Toshiro Hitsugaya. You disappoint me."_

"_Head Captain, I–"_

"_Silence." Even though he knew it was a dream, Toshiro's mouth snapped shut, everything felt real. "You came to me, you sought out my advice and even though I could not speak it was as if you could hear my will. You made me so proud, Toshiro, you had come to the right conclusion. But when it came down to it, you forsook us all. You could not sacrifice one life to save billions!"_

"_But Captain, I–" the ancient fingers were around his throat and Yamamoto smashed him into the wall before he could move. The wood splintered behind his head and his vision blurred but the hand around his throat kept him upright._

"_You are a traitor Hitsugaya! A traitor to your own kind! To your responsibilities!"_

"_No! I made a choice!" Toshiro screamed past the pressure on his vocal cords. "Maybe sometimes we have to take the risk! Maybe sometimes you do have to have faith in something greater than logic and reason!"_

"_Faith!" the cat screeched at his feet and swiftly transformed into the master. Rangiku continued to laugh, standing just behind the Head Captain. "Faith in what captain? In God?"_

"_You are a soul reaper." Yamamoto added. "You are perfect proof that God does not exist."_

"_Just because you have never seen it, it doesn't mean there isn't something more, something greater than your power, Head Captain."_

_The Head Captain released him for a split second before smacking him hard in the face then picking him up again, though this time his fist knotted in the front of the boy's robes, not his neck and Toshiro braced for the next hit as Yamamoto raised his other hand._

"_You know nothing." He said before the fist plowed into the small face again._

"_I've seen it."_

_Yamamoto hesitated but Rangiku laughed hysterically. "He's delusional now, perhaps you should ease up Head Captain."_

_Yamamoto ignored her and stared at the small captain who now grinned even as the blood seeped out of his mouth._

"_Explain."_

"_How could Ichigo Kurosaki have won all those battles, against hollows, gillions, espada, soul reaper captains? How could his friends have just discovered powers when they needed to help him? How can he never give up even in the face of power such as Aizen's? His will, those friendships– they are proof of something greater than we are. They are proof that sometimes you have to take a leap of faith!"_

"_Insolent child."_

_The blows came hard and fast this time and he just caught glimpses of his laughing lieutenant. Finally he was dropped to the floor where he lay barely conscious. _

"_You have doomed us all on a foolish gamble."_

_Toshiro couldn't speak. Yamamoto and Rangiku faded but he heard foot steps reverberate through the floorboards. They were slow, but when the hand came to pull Toshiro up, somehow he was not surprised to see the falsely kind smile, the glasses and the tousled brown hair._ _Aizen propped him against the wall and though he remained leaning against it, the vision of the room changed all about him. He was on Sokioku Hill, there were bodies everywhere and a fire that could not be put out._

"_They all burned, because of you. I decided to make them fight each other, it was very entertaining but eventually, after friend killed friend, captain killed lieutenant, the survivors were taken down by their commander's flames. They are all gone. The universe can never return to its balance, I will reign over every plain of existence. Thank you Toshiro, for this gift."_

"_This is not reality."_

"_No?"_

"_This is your illusion."_

"_Hmmm. Maybe. Or is it still your dream? You torture yourself so much that I don't really need to interfere. But I'll let you decide what is and isn't real. Here." Aizen picked Toshiro up and walked a ways on the hill until he came to the body he wanted. He set the boy down next to it. "Now tell me this isn't real."_

_Toshiro nearly gagged on the stench of charred corpses, there were many around but this one was untouched. Momo. Her zampakuto was also one of flame and she had taken down many of her comrades. Toshiro touched her cheek. Her face was tight, in pain even in death. He felt the tears and could not stop them from flowing even as he screamed at himself that it had to be a dream._

"_I watched her kill them all. Then I reversed it. I let her see what she had done." Toshiro's eyes fell to the girl's wrists and he turned them over. Several gashes ran from her wrists nearly to her elbows. _

"_You made he kill herself."_

"_No. I made her kill them. Killing herself was her choice, her cowards way out."_

_Toshiro retracted his hand and turned to Aizen. "Don't you ever speak of her."_

"_You know its true. She only made it to be lieutenant because I picked her and I picked her because I needed someone who could be manipulated with little effort."_

"_You bastard."_

"_What? What will you do? You have no zampakuto, nothing, because you were weak back then, and couldn't let Ichigo die."_

"_You're lying! This never happened! This never will happen!"_

"_You really think you could have stopped me?" _

"_We will stop you." Toshiro managed to get to his feet but Aizen slammed him back into the ground. Suddenly they were in the empty room again._

"_No. You already failed."_

"_Get off of me!"_

"_Make me." Aizen smiled wickedly, throwing off his glasses and applying pressure to Toshiro's throat. The little captain glared back ferociously and he grabbed Aizen's wrists, trying to pry the hands off. "You don't have the power."_

_Toshiro felt his heart racing. He could hardly breath and things began to get fuzzy. His head rolled to the side and he saw the black cat watching him, emotionless._

"_Screw you!" Toshiro clenched his fingers tighter around Aizen and let his spiritual pressure flow out of him. The flesh beneath his fingers turned white as ice and Aizen cried out in pain as the frost flowed deeper and spread further. By the time he withdrew his arms were frozen up to the elbows._

"_How?"_

"_Power. Greater than yours you son of a bitch." Aizen vanished and Toshiro fell back exhausted. The pain in his gut wrenched through him and he felt the life seeping out._

"_Not bad, little captain," the cat hummed as it perched on his chest to stare down into his drooping eyes. "But like you said, this isn't real. The real Aizen is still out there, and this wound is still killing you. Hope that faith of yours is right, cause it looks like that kid is the only hope left."_

_Toshiro shut his eyes to the cat and the room but whispered one last thing,_

"_I believe in him."_


	14. Chapter 14

Ichigo woke to the clanging of iron and as his vision returned, made out the shape of a pair of arrancars chaining a small form to the wall.

"He won't make it."

"Aizen won't be pleased."

"What's one less soul reaper?"

"True."

The two exited leaving a the bloody body of the boy captain to slide down the wall, the irons around his wrists clanging loudly as they struck the stone.

"Toshiro." Ichigo's voice was hoarse, his own wounds hurt terribly. "Toshiro are you awake?"

One teal eye opened. The other was obscured by a gash that ran through his cheek and eyebrow, from when he landed in the pile of zampakutos. But the real concern was the wound in his stomach. The boys robes were mostly torn off his torso and the bandage that covered his wound was exposed, red, wet, doing little good.

"Toshiro hang on." Ichigo tried to crawl forward but his wounds made it difficult and eventually he came to the end of his chains, just out of reach of his friend. "Toshiro."

"Ichi...go..."

"Yes, I'm here."

"I'm...sorry."

"Shhh, don't say that. You saved me."

"I doomed us...ev..ry...one..."

"Toshiro, we'll get out of this."

"No. I'm sorry Ichigo...I'm sorry...you have to..."

"I have to what?"

"Have to do it alone..."

"Do what alone?"

"Save them."

"Wait, Toshiro, hang on!" But the breath was already leaving him. His single eye filled with water, spilling down the pale cheek as the lashes closed.

"TOSHIRO!" But there was nothing he could do. Ichigo pulled against the chains with everything he had but already the tiny body was disappearing, turning back into spiritual energy that floated away until there was nothing but empty shackles. Ichigo finally stopped pulling at the chains. He stared in disbelief for one long moment before his whole body gave in to the grief.

"So its only you then." the voice carried to him even over his sobs but he could not stop the heaves that wracked his body, even to face Aizen. "Well, we'll just have to be more careful with you then."

Ichigo did not resist when the door opened and arrancars entered to carry him away. When the sobs did end, he was left in shock and lay passively on the medical table while the pink haired espada he'd fought earlier made sure his wounds were well dressed.

"Is that all it took to break you, Ichigo Kurosaki? This experiment won't tell me anything if you're already compliant." Aizen watched him in his bed but the teen neither looked at him or said anything. The Lord of Los Noches sighed and turned to his underling. "Keep him healthy, we'll begin the experiment as soon as he's back to normal."

The cold eyes swept over the stunned teen once more before he marched out of the room.

* * *

It was a week later that Ichigo woke up, really woke up that is. The combination of his injuries and the shock had pushed him into a place he did not know and never wanted to return to. The esapada who'd been tending to him had put him under to help him heal, and now when he woke and the sedatives finally left his system he saw clearly again. The pain in his chest did not leave but he swallowed back the grief, knowing what he had to do.

He rose in the all white room. It was a cell of sorts, a heavy door sealed him in but he had a bed and a bathroom and a fresh set of clothing. They were very similar to his soul reaper robes except that the fabric was almost completely white, only a few black trimmings on the cuffs and neck. Suddenly he felt anger and wanted to rip the clothes to shreds but he let it pass. What did it matter? They were just clothes and they could not define him. He changed and sat back on the bed.

"I just need Zangetsu and the device. If I can locate those, I can still do this. Toshiro left it in the dessert, it might still be there." Ichigo clenched the sheets on the edge of the bed as he worked out his plan.

"And I already know where they'd be keeping Zangetsu. And if he's in the room where they are experimenting I'm sure that espada with pink hair will be too. So really, if I can get to him..."

Ichigo rose, the plan made, he wouldn't waste time. He concentrated on his power and pulled it into him faster than he'd ever done before then dropped to the floor. He shut his eyes but listened intently.

"Did you feel that?" the voice was muted but he heard the distinct clanking of a key in his door. The hinges creaked and others entered. "Oh shit."

"Aizen will kill us."

"He might not be dead, let's get him to Szayel." Two sets of strong arms grabbed him under his armpits and drug him quickly out of the room and down the hall. The arrancars burst into the lab, Ichigo risked a quick glance and he saw immediately what he was looking for. His own zampakuto was in the device. He shut his eyes again as he was dropped at the feet of the eighth espada.

"What happened?"

"We don't know. His spiritual pressure suddenly dropped to zero."

"What?" Szayel rolled Ichigo over and checked his pulse. "You damn idiots." Before the scientist could prepare himself Ichigo let his spiritual pressure release and sent the arrancars flying back. He didn't wait this time and went straight to his hollow mask.

In this form he easily snatched his zamapkuto back and fled the room. Everything sped by in a blur as he followed the path he'd taken with Toshiro back through the labyrinth of corridors until finally he hit open dessert. He slowed when he came to the place where they appeared.

At first he saw nothing but then he kicked the sand and struck something. Brushing away the grains he found their escape.

"You said even I could open this, lets see if you were right." Ichigo set the device in the sand and turned it on. He drove his sword into the space above it and concentrated his energy. Sure enough the cracks form. "Thank you, Captain Hitsugaya." Ichigo jumped through the cracks back to his own reality.

* * *

"I should have gone with you to begin with." It was a day after Ichigo's return. When he'd arrived he'd passed out. They weren't sure if it had been a spiritual drain or just a result of having been sedated for so long. He continued to recover in a room at Urahara's shop with Uryu at his side.

"It wouldn't have made a difference." he muttered back.

"Maybe, maybe not. But you and I will have to do it this time. I can hide my spiritual pressure too. Tessai's coming as well. This really will be our last shot. Chad and Orihime would come but there's no time to teach them to conceal their energy. Do you think you might be able to contact the Vizards?"

"I tried a long time ago. Toshiro thinks Aizen got to them too."

"Then we truly are alone."

"We are."

Uryu sighed and stood. "Get some more rest. I'll get everything ready for our departure."

Ichigo couldn't bring himself to argue, he just lay motionless and shut his eyes.

Finally they stood in the basement once more, preparing to depart. Orihime was already crying, Ichigo just stood and watched. He knew they were probably not coming back this time.

No one spoke. Uryu switch on the device and he and Tessai waited for Ichigo to open the gate. The teen stuck his blade into the air but then froze. Everyone felt the energy above ground, rippling from high above and shaking even the deep foundations of the training room.

"What is that?" Orhime gasped but the others were already running. They sped to the surface and out into the bright noon sun. There was something moving, a group in the sky, dressed in black and white.

"Is that..." Uryu squinted.

"The captains." Chad finished for him.

"The soul reapers. Are they back?" Orihime squeaked.

"They have their zampakutos." Tessai said shielding his eyes to better see them.

"What are they doing?" Orihime asked, gripping Ichigo's sleeve. But no one answered. They all watched, hoping that this was no what it appeared. But it was. The group stopped moving and divided, twelve figures shot off in different directions while one remained above, raising his sword.

Orange flames erupted above and the blast wave of spiritual pressure that came with it sent the spectators to the ground. All around the city things were erupting in bursts of spiritual pressure, humans ran unable to see what attacked them.

"No..." Orhime cried.

Ichigo tensed and made to leap into battle but was stopped when a white figure appeared above him.

"Aizen you bastard!"

"Ah come now Ichigo. Wasn't it obvious? I let you go, I wanted you to be a part of all this."

Uryu made a startled noise beside him and turned to Ichigo in shock.

"What?" the red head asked.

"Ichigo I think–"

"Yes, you've got it Quincy." Aizen smiled. Then he turned to Ichigo. "Now, do my bidding, Zangetsu!"

Ichigo froze. He felt himself being choked away as the power inside him rose to Aizen's command. He watched unable to control himself as he pushed Orihime away and swung out at the quincy. Uryu could not move fast enough, Zangetsu was up to the hilt in his stomach. His eyes were not shocked but sad as the blood spurted out his mouth and he fell back.

"Uryu!" Orhime ran to his side but Ichigo was lifting the sword again. He hammered down on the defenceless girl but met a much more solid form. Chad staggered under the blow but remained protectively over the girl. But even his strength was not enough. One by one he cut them down. Once Chad fell it was Tessai and then the girl was alone, amidst the bodies.

"Do it, Ichigo." Aizen stood upon the ground and watched the boy advance on his prey. Orhime trembled but did not try to run or summon her powers.

"Ichigo." He raised the blade. "I love you."

Zangetsu fell faster than she could see. She dropped at his feet in a pool of blood.

"Good." Aizen walked up to the boy and pulled Zangetsu from his compliant fingers. "Now, wake up."

The light returned to his eyes, he had control once more and looked around at the bodies. Nothing in the world could contain his rage but even as he stood before the source of his sorrows he knew he could not defeat him. He dropped to his knees in the sea of his friends'blood, howling in agony to the sky.

* * *

**_Well I hope you've enjoyed this writing spree I've had this weekend. I may even post one more chapter tonight if I can manage it so as not to leave you hanging too badly but hopefully these last three chapters have given those of you who have been waiting for an update some relief. _**


	15. Chapter 15

Ichigo didn't know how long he'd lain amidst the devastation he'd created, shaking, crying, screaming. But eventually Aizen had gotten his fill and pulled the teen to his feet.

"You did good work, Ichigo." He kept one arm holding him up while he gently wiped the tears from the boy's eyes with his free hand. "You will be an excellent addition to my new army."

Ichigo couldn't speak. His rage was even making his vision blur and he felt cold all over his body, even inside of him.

"What's the matter child?"

The hand was still on his cheek and he wanted to rip away but couldn't. Even when Ichigo opened his mouth to curse Aizen nothing happened. His head was swimming, he looked around but could hardly see.

He tried to concentrate but the freezing cold was penetrating everything, he couldn't focus even in the chaos around them. His eyes felt heavy and his head drooped. He saw the pool of blood at his feet but it was fading, turning to clear, crystal water.

"Ichigo." the voice reverberated through the haze of his consciousness but it was not Aizen and soon the world around him was fading into shadow. "Ichigo!" the voice sounded again, a little more clear this time. "Wake up!"

Suddenly Aizen's arm on his shoulder was gone and the world went pitch black, the cold was overwhelming. Ichigo could see nothing of his world, his friends's bodies, just one small, pale face surrounded by a halo of white hair. Frost shimmered on his lashes while water dripped down his face. Ichigo felt the heaviness of his own robes, pulled down by the weight of icy waters.

"Toshiro?" He stared into the teal eyes he never thought he'd see made sense, how had he gotten here?

"It wasn't real Ichigo." The captain spoke softly and knelt down next to Ichigo. He hadn't realized he was on his knees and when he tried to move found himself chained. Toshiro took a moment to reach down and freeze the metal shackles before crushing them into dust. Still, Ichigo sat in shock.

"Ichigo, are you okay?" The young captain rose again, just a bit taller than Ichigo was kneeling.

"Y-you died. Days ago." But as his eyes trailed to the little captain's stomach, the wound that he thought had killed him, he saw the blood was fresh on the robes.

"No Ichigo, it was an illusion."

"No, so much time passed."

"How long?"

Ichigo slowly became aware of his own injuries and remembered hazily the many days it had taken for the pink haired espada to heal him.

"Too long, Aizen can't have done this, it was real."

"It wasn't Ichigo. Its only been a few hours since he took us."

Toshiro watched the emotions slowly break on Ichigo's face. He was pale from loss of blood and his features were washed out even more by the dark shadows and the fact that he was completely drenched in freezing water.

"But I saw them die by my sword. Their blood was on my hands."

Toshiro remembered his own experience vividly but shook it off, trying to remain strong in front of the broken teen.

"Its okay Ichigo."

Then the flood struck and Ichigo shook and trembled as the sobs came. He was fighting with everything he had to contain it but could not win.

Toshiro hesitated before stepping closer, reaching a hand around the boy's shoulder. Ichigo did not respond much but his head sunk and came to rest against Toshiro's chest. He was emotionally and physically exhausted.

"I don't know what you saw Ichigo." Toshiro whispered, raising a hand to the orange head of hair in a gesture of comfort. "But Aizen was trying to break you. Whatever he made you see was a lie. It did not happen."

Ichigo nodded but was soon gasping in the Captain's embrace, unable to shake the agony of his emotions from the illusion. His arms folded around Toshiro as if he might disappear at any moment. Toshiro felt a swell of anger toward Aizen and the water continued to pour from the ceiling.

Finally Ichigo pulled back and sat in the now ankle deep water. The rain ended and he looked up at the captain, his face stained with Toshiro's blood. Toshiro was badly wounded, the cut through his eyebrow and cheek had fortunately missed his eye but was deep and obscured half his face in crimson. The rest of him was sliced here and there, his legs especially, not to mention the stomach wound. Ichigo's wounds were also severe but the cold seemed to keep the full force of the pain at bay. He scooped up some water and looked at it.

"I don't understand. What did you do?"

"I too saw an illusion. But when I released my power in the dream it happened here as well, to some extent anyway. When I was a child I had trouble controlling my spiritual pressure, I used to nearly freeze our house at night, so I guess the same thing happened here and the cold snapped me back, like it did for you."

"You have that much power without your Zampakuto?"

"He is still very close, and this," he wave his hand around the flooded room, "this is just the form my spiritual pressure naturally takes. In order to control it to any real extent I need Hyorinmaru."

Ichigo pondered the matter for a moment and frowned.

"What is it Ichigo?"

"In that case, couldn't–"

There was a clang at their door and they tensed. Toshiro shot Ichigo a glance and they took their stances.

"As fast as you can." Toshiro whispered. The door opened and a torrent of water rushed onto the unsuspecting guards. They toppled completely when the two captives whom they expected to be shackled to the walls flash stepped past them.

Ichigo followed the streak of white ahead of him. Hitsugaya was locked on to his zampakuto, he knew where to go. Soon enough they were back at the double doors.

"Aizen is in there."

"What do we do?"

Neither of them were in shape for round two but they had little time to decide. If they did not go to Aizen he would come to them.

"This time, I take Aizen."

"What?"

"Use the kido Tessai taught you, it will be enough to keep them at bay. Find Zangetsu and Hyorinmaru."

"Wait, what is your plan?"

"The same as last time."

"But now Aizen knows."

"Once you get me Hyorinmaru, I'll buy us the time we need."

"Toshiro."

"What?"

"You're zampakuto is your soul right?"

"Well its not really that simple but basically, yes. Why are you asking me this now?"

"Because. If you Hyorinmaru is your soul, then why can't you manifest him without your zampakuto?"

"Ichigo, that's ridiculous–"

"Have you ever tried?"

Toshiro paused and looked at his own hands. He looked to his soaked robes and then to the face of the boy in which he'd decided to place all his hope.

"Okay Ichigo. Change of plans."

* * *

The experiment room had just been put back in order when the two burst in. Aizen was only mildly surprised by their entrance and smiled at them patronizingly. But the actions of the small captain caught him off guard.

"What are you planning now, Hitsugaya?"

Toshiro didn't answer he just slammed his zampakuto-sliced palms onto the floor and let all his spiritual pressure flood out of him.

Ichigo watched the ice leap up from the ground, encasing everything from floor to ceiling in solid ice. Illusions didn't matter, if Aizen really was in this room, whether it was where they saw him or not, he was frozen, at least for a few moments.

Toshiro stood but he'd poured much of his strength into forming the ice without his zampakuto. Still, Ichigo had been right, they had a chance.

"Hurry." Toshiro had left a path to the pile of zampakuto and to the device. Ichigo picked him up and carried him to the pile that was nothing but silver shimmers behind a wall of ice. Toshiro lay his hands against the barrier and began the chant.

Ichigo meanwhile used his hado to melt his way down to the brainwashing device. He felt a pang when he realized it was Zangetsu in its clutches, just like in his dream. He looked around for Hyorinmaru and swallowed when he saw the glimmer of a green handle on the ground next to Aizen, trapped in the sheet of ice.

He glanced back to Toshiro and saw that he was fully concentrated on the spell. Ichigo had to do this on his own, his hado would have to be precise.

He lifted his hands to the block of ice and tried to melt a thin path along the floor only, just enough to reach the handle, then he could pull it the rest of the way out. He felt himself tremble in anticipation as he got closer to Aizen. It was like trying to sneak past a sleeping dragon, and precision was not Ichigo's strong point. He glanced back at the captain and knew he was close to the end.

"No more time. Come on." Ichigo pushed more power into the spell and a path opened up, not as straight as he wanted but it exposed the end of hilt. Ichigo scraped the rest of the ice away with Zangetsu until he could grasp the handle. He was now directly under Aizen.

"Come on!" Ichigo hollered to himself as he tugged on the hilt. Then, with a crack, the blade came free.

Ichigo turned back to the little captain and saw his wide eyes. Ichigo's triumphant smile faded as he heard the crack of ice spread, the noise rising above his head into the wall of ice. Then it shattered into a million shards and the hand was in his hair.

Toshiro's eyes locked on his and he whispered the final word of the spell. There was a yellow light, explosive like lightening, and in its wake it left a sea of water, the pure energy melting the entire room.

When Ichigo regained his vision he saw nothing, just an empty space where the captain and the zampakutos had been.

"He did it." Ichigo breathed but the hand tightened in his hair.

"He left you behind."

"No," came a cool voice behind them, "I didn't." Hyorinmaru plunged through Aizen's shoulder. Ichigo wriggled free and stared up in shock as the blood dripped off the blade. This was it. They finally had him.

"Well, aren't you going to finish it?" Aizen's face did not entirely mask the pain but the mocking in his voice was clear. Ichigo slowly moved to where he could see Toshiro. The captain was barely standing. He'd managed to get his sword through the enemy but he'd depleted his spiritual power. He had nothing with which to finish Aizen. It was up to him.

"Getsuga– Ahh!" Ichigo reeled back in pain. He felt like someone had pushed a needle into his brain and he dropped Zangetsu to the floor.

"Oh yes, I didn't get a chance to mention that we went ahead and started experimenting on your zampakuto. We didn't get a chance to finish but I think you will find it rather hard to harm me with it."

"Bastard!" Ichigo raised his hand to perform a kido but Aizen raised an elbow, striking Toshiro hard in the face and ripped Hyorinmaru out of his shoulder. Ichigo just finished the chant when Aizen grabbed the front of Toshiro's robes and drug him to his feet in front of him.

"Go ahead and strike, if you really want to."

Ichigo held his hand up for a few more moments then let it drop.

"Good choice, considering it wouldn't have done any damage to me anyway." Aizen hurled Toshiro's body into Ichigo and he felt the chains of binding wrap around them both even as they were still spinning on the ground.

"Now I guess I'm going to have to pay your friends a visit."

Ichigo screamed in frustration, pushing against the chains but it was not good. Aizen disappeared from the room.

* * *

_**Fewf, four chapters in a day, hope that satisfies. And look, Toshiro is still alive! Thanks for all your reviews so far, I hope you keep reading!**_


	16. Chapter 16

"Its all going to come true."

Ichigo's head slumped onto his knees but didn't stay that way for long as it caused a fair bit of pain. His hands were shackled to the walls on either side of him, it was very uncomfortable. He faced Toshiro who was similarly shackled but could not sit because of his stature. He hung painfully, too weak to stand but still conscious.

Szayel had been in briefly to patch up their wounds but the boy still looked pale and his tattered robes only added to his state of physical devastation. It was torture for Ichigo to have to watch him and not be able to help but at the same time he was sick with worry for his friends at home.

"No Ichigo..." Toshiro's head lifted a little to look him in the eyes, "it won't."

"But in the dream I turned on them. I didn't even know he'd gotten control. What if he gets control in reality?"

"He wants you to doubt yourself. Don't let him win."

"I know, I'm sorry but he could have killed them already and we're stuck here."

"No, he's still here...I feel him. His wound...it will take a little time to heal."

"Like what, an hour?"

"Maybe."

"Then we have an hour to get the hell out of here. Got any plans?"

"No."

Toshiro's head slumped forward again and Ichigo left him alone. His mind whirled through plan after plan but he could not figure out how to escape. He'd figured that if Toshiro could use his powers without Hyroinmaru, he should be able to do the same with Zangetsu but he couldn't do it.

He wondered if it was because of the brainwashing, but he also wondered if it was because he had no natural manifestation like Toshiro. In fact, he couldn't think of another zampakuto that did. He knew Rukia's spiritual pressure very well and never once seen or felt ice around her when she did not have her zampakuto. He knew Momo's was fire and that was natural but she had never shown the ability to summon it on her own.

And the others, like Rangiku, Byakuya, Renji- they did not have zampakutos that reflected natural elements like Hyorinmaru. Remembering what Toshiro had told him about freezing his house as a child, Ichigo knew that the others did not have forms that could be manifested as just raw spiritual pressure unless their houses had gotten filled with micro blades, rose petals or baboon-snakes when they were children. Somehow, he thought he would have heard about that.

Maybe it was the connection to a natural element. Or maybe just because he was the boy genius. Ichigo sighed. Even if he did figure it out, it wouldn't help them. Looking to the captain across from him he knew there was nothing they could do.

* * *

Uryu woke in the early hours. There had been a burst of spiritual pressure in the shop and he rose and rushed out of his room. There was no doubt where the pressure had come from and he ran barefoot down the hall then slid down the ladder to the basement. Tessai was already there and the others slowly trailed down behind him. They all came to the massive pile of frosty zampakutos that now littered the floor of the training ground.

"We must seal off the shop now." Tessai said.

"Wait, what do you mean?" Uryu looked up, surprised.

"An advanced kido, I will create a barrier around the shop so even if Aizen chases after the zampakutos he will not be able to reach them immediately. It will be safest inside here."

"But Ichigo needs us. Will we be able to leave?"

"Once the barrier is raised, no."

"Then we must go now." Uryu rose but stopped when Orihime followed.

"No, Orihime, stay here."

"You said we would station ourselves around the city."

"Chad and I will. Not you."

"Hey! We're coming too!" Jinta jumped up wielding his bat. Ururu silently rose beside him.

"Now just hold on–" but Uryu stopped when he saw Orihime's smile. "What are you smiling about?"

"You are so much like them both, and yet it was you who convinced them to let us help. Don't be a hypocrite now Uryu. We're coming with you."

"Actually," the voice was Tessai, "I need you to stay here, Ms. Inoue. I will try, but you are the best hope for reversing the damage done to these zampakutos. I doubt that all are completely brainwashed but Aizen had them for months– it is more than I can handle on my own."

"It's settled then." Uryu nodded to Tessai and squeezed Orihime's hand before turning away. The two shop children waved goodbye and followed. Orihime felt hot tears as she watched them go but a large hand came to brush the first one away as it fell.

"You are needed here. Do what you do best, heal, and we will help him. Trust us, like you trust him."

Orihime stared up into Chad's eyes under the fringe of his hair. She smiled past the tears and threw her arms around him. "I do Chad, thank you. Be safe." She gave him a light kiss on the cheek and let him go.

"Keep those kids safe." Tessai called after him. Chad looked back and nodded, it was enough for the assistant and he began his work. Orihime went to the pile and selected a zampakuto at random. It was familiar, and when she saw the pink woven hilt she smiled.

"Hello, Haineko."

* * *

"_Now what, little Captain? What will your precious human do for you now?"_

"_You aren't really Haineko."_

"_What makes you think that?"_

"_For one thing Haineko doesn't morph into Rangiku."_

"_Hmm, perhaps, but that doesn't mean I'm not her, on some level."_

"_If my mind counts as a level, I suppose." Toshiro sat up and leaned against the wall. The black cat nudged his side looking to be petted._

"_If you are Haineko, then I have a question."_

"_Yes?"_

"_How is possible that I used my powers without Hyroinmaru?"_

"_Hmmm. That is an interesting one. I'll give the kid credit on that idea but now look at you, you don't have enough spiritual pressure left to freeze a tear drop. And trust me, there will be lots of those."_

"_You didn't answer my question."_

"_I didn't?"_

"_You don't know."_

"_No, I don't, but I don't think there is an answer, not like what you want. This isn't a sign of anything other than your naturally cold personality. You're just a freak of nature, not a prodigy."_

_Toshiro did not respond to the cat's antagonizing so it just curled up next to him and rested its head on his lap._

"_Are you going back now?" It purred._

"_I suppose, if you have no answers for me."_

"_No answers, not now." The cat rolled onto its back and before Toshiro realized it had morphed into his lieutenant. She smiled up at him from his lap and he felt the blush rising._

"_Get off of me!" Her grin only deepened and she reached up to touch his face. _

"_Is that what you really want?" But then her hand withdrew startled and she clutched her head. "Captain..." the moan sounded like Rangiku, his Rangiku. Suddenly he had her in his arms as she cried out in pain. "Captain what's happening?"_

"_Rangiku, is it you?"_

"_Where am I?"_

"_You're with me, your safe."_

"_Captain..." the girl went limp in his arms and shrunk back to the cat._

"_Haineko!" But she skittered away from him without a word and the empty room faded away._

_

* * *

_

In one of the many silent rooms of the fourth division where rows of bodies lay on stretchers, one shrill shriek sounded, echoing off the walls. Rangiku sat up, shaking, shivering. She stood up on trembling legs and half collapsed on the figure next to her.

"Momo!" She touched the girl's neck but felt nothing. The flesh was cold, but there was still some sort of glow about her. She couldn't be dead. Ragiku swallowed and made her way out of the room.

It was hard going, she was so weak, but she used the wall as support until she came to the surgical room. The floor was covered in crusted brown blood, it looked to be weeks old. Everything was still set up from her captain's surgery but no one was here, not the patient or the healer. That was her last memory, standing in this room, watching him die.

"He can't have..." she searched further and found a room that had been mostly destroyed, like an explosion had gone off from one of the two beds. There were scattered books in one corner, and some rotting fruit that looked like it had come from Byakuya's trees. She didn't know quite what to make of it all.

She made her way out of the healing house and began searching the nearby buildings for any sign of life. There was nothing, just bodies, everywhere. The only place she could think to go was the twelfth division so she made her way there. Her stomach ached with hunger but she seemed to be regaining her footing and walked on at a steady pace. She reached the twelfth division and began the long descent into the lab.

Part way down she began to notice bits of frost covered tile, and further on there was even some patches of solid ice. She began to hurry, knowing the signs of her captain, and ran down the winding stairs. Her excitement turned to shock, however, when she rounded the last turn and saw two frozen figures in the centre of a barely lit room.

Her breath puffed out before her, the room was freezing cold and shattered ice lay everywhere. She saw patches of blood stains and then turned back to the two trapped in ice. Though their images were distorted, there was no doubt that it was Kurotsuchi and his lieutenant. Neither looked wounded but each looked like they'd been stopped in the heat of battle. Nemu's hand was raised and twisted oddly and Kurotsuchi's hands were outstretched and his face distorted by an expression crossed between desperation and rage. There was no doubt this had been the work of her captain. Rangiku knew his technique of the thousand year ice prison.

"What happened here?" She breathed and leaned back against the ice that held a faint glow. The room was creepy, cast in shadows and the eerie light of ice and computer consoles so she forced herself back up the long staircase. Once at the surface she felt her exhaustion growing and knew she needed to find some food so she headed toward her barracks.

She became aware of something as she walked: a presence, she was not alone. She instinctively reached for Haineko even though she'd painfully discovered her missing along with all the other zampakutos. Her hand hung in space for a long moment as every warrior sense went on edge.

"Who's there?" She cried finally when the suspense became to much. She felt the wind brush by her and spun to find herself staring into dark eyes set in a pale, handsome face. Strong hands gripped her and she felt a second presence behind her.

"Captain Kuchki, Renji..."

Byakuya stared coldly into her eye. "Lieutenant Matsumoto, you are not supposed to be awake."


	17. Chapter 17

Toshiro came around again when he heard Ichigo cursing someone. A second later he felt himself falling. The chains on his wrists clattered loudly but he didn't notice past the ringing in his ears as his head struck the hard ground. Rough hands picked him up and he caught Ichigo's panicked look as he was drug past.

"Don't worry, you're next." One arrancar sneered as he walked past. Ichigo yanked against his chains but to no avail, they took Toshiro away and disappeared out of sight. But he wasn't alone for long. Another set of arrancars came for him.

"Where did you take him?"

"To be sedated. After his display in the experiment room, Lord Aizen would like him a little more secure."

"And me?"

"You are needed elsewhere."

Ichigo struggled but there was little point. He was drug to the experiment room and strapped to a chair near the device. Ichigo swallowed hard when he saw Zangetsu was back inside of it. Aizen swept into the room and inspected both his captives: the sword and its master.

"You're still here." Ichigo exclaimed with a mix of dread and relief.

"I decided that if I'm going to the world of the living, you might as well accompany me back to your home. You would like to see your friends again, wouldn't you?"

Ichigo's fists balled and he tugged on the straps that held him. Visions of Orihime's teary eyes, Uryu's bloody corps and Chad's body falling before him, flashed before his eyes. He clenched his jaw in anger.

"I see the memories are still fresh." Aizen smiled.

"Not memories, illusions."

"Oh don't worry. It will all become very real soon enough." Aizen smiled and moved toward the device. "You know, there isn't really much science involved in the process of brainwashing zampakutos. This device I made using the Hogyoku makes the process more efficient, but really, all I'm doing is pouring my own will into them. The tricky part is making sure I only bend them, and not break them. Toshiro thought he could break this machine to sever its hold on his friends. His theory was correct but his target was wrong. If he really wants to sever the connection, he will have to destroy me."

He lay his hand on Zangetsu's blade and Ichigo instantly felt the coldness in his heart. Aizen smiled at his reaction.

"Yes, I think this will be a little more interesting than the other transformations."

"Others?" Ichigo gasped. "You mean Nemu and Kurotsuchi?"

Aizen chuckled and smiled down on Ichigo patronizingly. "Ichigo, I've had these zampakutos for weeks. I assure you, I have succeeded with much more than two."

Ichigo's eyes widened but he could not react further as Aizen's fist clenched around his Zangetsu.

* * *

Toshiro was barely conscious when he was brought to Szayel's lab and strapped to a table. When the IV went into his arm it took no time for the sedatives to push him the rest of the way under.

_This time, there was no cat and no empty room. He was back in more familiar territory: an icy plain, refreshing, open, clean. This was where he needed to be._

"_Hyorinmaru, can you hear me?"_

"_Master." the voice sounded distant and he could not see the ice dragon like normal but that was because of their physical separation._

"_Are you alright?"_

"_Yes."_

"_Good. Has Aizen done anything to you?"_

"_No, only looked. He seemed displeased with me."_

"_He doesn't understand, and honestly I don't either. Do you know how I was able to summon so much power without you?"_

"_For the same reason that Aizen is able to control the minds of soul reapers even when_ _they separated from their zampakutos across dimensions. Because of what a zampakuto is."_

"_It's a manifestation of–"_

"_Master what am I? What am I really?"_

"_You're Hyorinmaru, the master of water and ice, my zampakuto."_

"_No, master, keep it even simpler than that. What am I?"_

"_You...you are part of me."_

"_Precisely."_

"_But–"_

"_That is your answer."_

"_Wait–" But there was a flurry of wind and snow and the rumble of his dragon's voice was distant. He felt the earth shake beneath him. This had never happened before. But it was not Hyroinmaru or him causing this chaos, something was happening outside._

The pink haired espada did not notice the frost that climbed its way up the inside of the clear tube that ran into Hitsugaya's veins. His back was turned when the light lashes fluttered open and his patient-prisoner became fully conscious once more. Szayel didn't even hear his deep inhalation of breath, but that was because all espada's attention was fixed on something else. Toshiro became conscious of the dark power rippling through Los Noches. It was familiar but twisted and black.

It had to be Ichigo's hollow form.

"Bastard..." Szayel did hear this but Toshiro had already frozen and snapped his bonds. He slipped under Szayel's strike and stumbled forward into a tray of instruments. He grabbed the first needle he found, having absolutely no idea what was in it, but when the eighth jumped on him he turned at the last second and drove it deep into his chest, he hoped into the heart. He pumped the liquid in mercilessly, staring coldly past the pink framed glasses into the mad eyes the arrancar scientist. He fell with a dull thud and Toshiro wasted no more time on him.

The waves of energy that rippled out of the experiment room actually caused the captain to pause. He had regained only an ounce of his strength, enough to freeze and iv line and some straps but not enough with which to do battle. He was weak enough that he felt these pulses of black energy rush past him like gale force winds.

"Come on, Hyorinmaru." He pushed the doors open wondering vaguely how many times he would have to fight his way in and out of this room before they won. But the thought left as quickly as it came when he witnessed the scene before him.

It seemed to him that Aizen had attempted to brainwash Ichigo while he was still conscious. There were the shattered remains of a chair, the device which held the zampakuto was utterly destroyed and Aizen was actually bleeding. Several arrancar bodies littered the floor and at the centre of all the devastation was a beast.

He was not quite a man in shape, his body was larger than normal, he had a massive gaping hollow space in his chest, covered in his back by a mane of long orange hair. And on his head, above the white and red mask and the black eyes, were two curved horns.

"Ichigo..."

The monster roared, wielding his black zamapkuto. Aizen flashed around it delivering blow after blow but nothing seemed enough to take it down. And it returned the attacks, just as fast, just as deadly. Toshiro watched Aizen summon his power. He was trying to summon an illusion for Ichigo but it didn't seem to be working.

_Those eyes haven't seen it. Those eyes cannot be fooled._

The thought almost brought hope to Toshiro but darkness came instead. What did this form mean? Was Ichigo in control, and if not could he regain it? Was killing Aizen worth losing Ichigo to this monster?

Toshiro cursed himself for not paying more attention to the boy in training. He should have asked him about being a vizard, about his mask and inner hollow, but instead he'd hidden himself away in Kurotsuchi's lab for days on end.

There was a huge explosion. Ichigo's hollow form had manifested an incredible energy between the two horns, a cero, more powerful than Toshiro had ever witnessed, and Aizen had countered with one of his own. The impact tore through the room and continued to burn a scar deep into the palace. Chunks of wall and ceiling fell around Toshiro and the only thing that had protected him was the fact that he'd thrown himself flat on the floor. He looked up through the dust-clouded air and tried to see the two.

They both stood, grey shapes in the shower of dust, but both still in fighting stance. Neither had escaped without injury. There was a long cut along the side of Aizen's head, painting his white robes red on the left side. The hollow Ichigo bore a deep gash in his side.

_Master._

Toshiro stiffened and realized he was very close to his zampakuto. Hyorinmaru was buried somewhere in the rubble.

"I'm coming." he whispered back, clearing away as much debris as he could. He was locked on to him now, he was just a couple feet under the fallen rocks and smashed equipment. Toshiro heard metal on metal and knew the two were engaged once more. He had to help Ichigo, no matter what form he was in. This looked to be their best opportunity to kill the real monster.

Finally his small fingers reached through a gap and closed around the hilt he knew so well. He felt a rush of cool energy, like a well being refilled in a heavy rain. Hyorinmaru had remained strong in their separation and now the captain borrowed that strength.

"Let's go, Hyorinmaru."

His swift, smooth swings of his blade were out of place in the frantic battle between beast and monster. Aizen was forced to use his sword as a weapon of action, no time to use it to deceive. Toshiro hoped to get a solid blow in the first strike but found himself dodging an attack from the hollow Ichigo. It seemed he had no control over where he directed his all consuming lust for blood. This would change things.

Still not at full strength, Hitsugaya did not think he could manage bankai long enough to be effective. But he had little time to strategize before he too was sucked into the furious brawl of clashing blades where there was no time for anything but blocking and delivering blows.

"Harder than you expected, eh little Captain?" Aizen smiled even though he was sporting a collection of wounds from Ichigo. Hitsugaya didn't answer, it wasn't worth wasting his breath. He had no idea how long the three fought each other. Almost the entire battle took place at the insane speeds of flashstep. Perhaps their speed was what was keeping the arrancars who had gathered at bay, or perhaps it was fear. But if either he or Ichigo faltered, he was sure they would be on him in an instant.

But there was another possibility that crept into the back of his mind that he couldn't quite keep from darkening his thought. Maybe they didn't intervene because they knew their master was in no danger.

The thought was only strengthened when Toshiro felt one of Ichigo's horns graze his ribs and he spun away only to be struck by Aizen. He felt the snap of his jaw break when it met the butt of his sword and gasped in pain but righted himself in time to block the next attack.

He was so busy blocking the blows from Aizen that he didn't see Ichigo heading straight for Aizen's back. There was a sick crack and his opponent stopped wielding his sword at once. Aizen's face twisted in pain and the illusive blade dropped from limp fingers. The black sword was jutting our of his body, right through his sternum. Toshiro stared in amazement.

Then a funny feeling washed over him. He'd felt it before. It was spreading from his fingertips to his shoulder on his right side. A sort of tingling followed by intense pain. He looked at the limb and for a few seconds longer saw untouched flesh, and then the illusion faded, reality struck, and he saw the bone-deep wound that ran the length of the entire limb. But even worse he saw that his fingers closed around nothing but empty air and Aizen held his most precious possession in his cruel hand.

Hollow Ichigo was still there, only the last few seconds of battle had been Aizen's illusion, probably stated with the blow to his jaw, Toshiro thought. Ichigo was still fighting but Aizen seemed to have surpassed even him now, his speed so incredible that he was able to hold him off with one arm while he dangled Hyorinmaru before Hitsugaya.

"I was curious about you and your zampakuto. But this is the second time you've surprised me and you just aren't worth the risk to keep around. Ichigo will be enough once I calm him down."

Aizen's hand wrapped around the blade and Toshiro felt his heart constrict in his chest. He couldn't quite tell what Aizen was doing but it felt and looked like he was using his own spiritual pressure to blast apart his blade. Black cracks formed in the silver surface, Toshrio could barely breath now and then, in an explosion of black light, the blade was torn apart completely. Hitsugaya fell to his knees, a silent scream on his lips. All his strength vanished, all his hopes. Aizen raised his own blade above the boy, preparing to end it all.

Neither noticed that the hollow Ichigo had stopped too. He stared down at the broken captain, some sort of recognition glinting in the yellow and black eyes. A low rumbling began deep inside of him and then he lunged on Aizen, knocking the blade away and scooping up Toshiro in a rough hold. There was a few more clangs of metal striking metal before Ichigo took off through the palace, busting out into the dessert night. Toshiro could just see blurs of stars and sand as he was jostled along but his heart and mind were still on the floor, still surrounded by the shards of his soul. He barely realized what was happening when the hollow hand reached out into the sky and instinctually opened the garganta, leaping back though the cracks to their own reality.

* * *

"Over there!" Uryu's head shot up from his half sleep. He followed the shop boy's hand to where it pointed high in the sky. A dark shape plummeted from vanishing cracks in the clouds.

"Wait here." Uryu ordered, jumping out the window of the abandoned building where the two were stationed on watch.

"Like hell!" Jinta sped past him, leaping high into the air.

"Dammit." Uryu hated to leave their post empty but could not leave Jinta to deal with whatever was coming on his own.

"Chad!" he hollered into the radio. "Did you see that?"

"Its right above me." the quiet teen responded. Uryu picked up his pace.

The being had landed by the time Uryu arrived. The pavement was splintered for several metres in all directions, the cracks deepening and widening as they converged on the central point where an inhumanly large pale figure with long orange hair knelt, hunched protectively over something.

Uryu glanced at Chad's shocked face as he made his way around to the front.

"Ichigo." The hollow jerked at the name and looked up. The eyes were as black as Uryu remembered them from the first time he'd seen this form but something else was there now, some manner of control. It knew him. "Ichigo, it's us. We've been waiting for you. Please transform back, your safe now."

The eyes were predator-like in how they shifted every second to a new location, taking in everything all the time, but they eventually came back to Uryu.

"Orihime." The name rumbled out of its throat, sounding almost mournful.

"She's at the shop but we can't get in there now. It is being protected by Tessai's barrier. Please, you have to do this yourself."

Slowly the masked head nodded but with a sudden howl, he turned violent again. He dropped the captain he'd been cradling so carefully and ran a few paces away from the group. Uryu held Chad back from following.

"Just wait."

Clawed hands reached around the edges of the hollow mask. The howl that came from behind it was desperate, angry, but human. White and red fragments shattered like porcelain, revealing the human inside. When the mask disappeared the rest of him transformed back to a soul reaper in a burst of spiritual pressure. Chad had made his way close enough to catch him as he fell but he was already unconscious. Uryu had the captain in his own arms and glancing between the two suddenly wished Orhime had not stayed within the barrier.


	18. Chapter 18

Toshiro was in the empty room. It felt different this time. The walls seemed closer, the ceiling lower and he felt a wave of claustrophobia.

"_Hanieko? Haineko are you there?" he stood up despite his wounds and waited at the single door where the cat always appeared, even though the door itself never opened. He tried the handle knowing nothing would happen then banged on the rough wood when he was proved right._

"_HAINEKO! RANGIKU!" Panic rushed over him, suddenly he needed out more than anything. He couldn't be in this place anymore, the air was thin, he couldn't breath._

"_HANIEKO!" He pounded uselessly against the wood until he slid to the floor gasping back sobs._

"_Are you sure its me you are _really _looking for?" he felt the warm brush of fur next to his hand and the vibrations of her purr when she nuzzled against him but it brought no comfort. She was right._

"_Hyorinmaru..."_

_

* * *

_

Toshiro woke to find himself gasping in the real world. Someone's arms where on his shoulders trying to shake him back to consciousness. He felt the tears that wet his face and couldn't managed to suppress the heaves that wracked his small form but wanted nothing more than to escape the hold as soon as he saw the brown eyes of the quiet giant.

"Its just a dream." The Chad said calmly and Toshiro suddenly felt bitter rage that this teenager was treating him like a child.

"I'm fine." He said rolling out of the grip and frantically wiping away the tears though it was still difficult to breath evenly. He sat facing away from Chad until he was confident he had control over himself again.

"What happened?" Toshiro asked though it pained him greatly to speak with his broken jaw. Chad explained how he and Ichigo had returned to the world of the living though they were still waiting to be filled in on what had happened in Heuco Mundo.

"So Ichigo is unconscious?"

"It has only been a couple of hours. Honestly we didn't expect you to wake up so soon."

"Did you take Zangetsu away from him?" Chad nodded. "Good. Keep a close eye on him."

Toshiro stood. His entire right arm was bandaged. It was stiff and hurt a great deal, but, he thought bitterly, he had nothing to use it for anyway. Chad caught his gaze.

"Tessai raised a barrier to protect the zampakutos. Orihime is inside to help him, otherwise we would have had her heal you."

"It's fine."

"Captain Hitsugaya...what happened?"

Toshiro gazed at him for a long moment. The moonlight struck his eyes and though it emphasized their depth of colour, it also revealed the sorrow therein. He broke his gaze with the teen and started for the door.

"Aizen will be here soon, we must be ready."

Without another word he slid outside and walked off into the night.

Toshiro didn't get far, he hadn't really expected them to leave him alone. Uryu was already outside when he exited Orihime's apartment where they were all gathered. His emotions were still running high and he feared he might explode at the teen so he tried to just keep walking.

"Where are you going?"

"I'll be back." He responded shortly.

"Toshiro, we really should stick together."

"Yes. Aizen is coming."

"Then you know–"

"I won't be long."

Uryu sighed. "I can feel the change in you. Aizen doesn't have Hyorinmaru captive does he? He destroyed him."

Toshiro whirled on the boy in fury but when he went to shout– to scream his uncontrollable rage– nothing came out. He just froze in the night, feeling the deepest emptiness throbbing inside him. Without another word he turned, trod heavily back up the stairs and into the apartment leaving the bewildered Quincy behind him.

Chad looked up startled when the little captain came back inside. He went straight to the couch where Ichigo was sprawled in sleep and sat on the floor next to it, leaning back and shutting his eyes, though he was unable to fall asleep again. There was some noise in the kitchen, Chad and Uryu were talking but a small voice next to him cause his eyes to snap back open. Ururu stood before him with a tray with tea, ice and a bowl of soup on it.

"Thank you." He took the tea immediately and then held the ice close to his face when he sipped his soup through the straw provided. The ice at least helped the swelling come down some. The rest of his injuries were equally as painful but he just couldn't seem to feel much beyond the ache in his heart. He waited an hour next to the sleeping boy before turning around, kneeling and shaking him awake.

It took a while for Ichigo to pull himself back from where ever he'd been. He was battered to hell, in no shape to fight again any time soon. Toshiro pressed him back down as he tried to rise.

"But Aizen?" The boy whispered back weakly. "What happened?"

"We got away but Aizen is coming."

"Then we have to get ready." Ichigo tried to rise again but again the captain held him down.

"Don't Ichigo. You're in no shape."

"But if he's coming..." Ichigo's eyes narrowed as if he could see flashes of what had happened, his face jumping from confusion, to rage, to sadness.

"Aizen had our zampakutos. He tried to brainwash Zangetsu but...my inner hollow came out." Toshiro nodded. "Then we fought– I'm sorry, I couldn't stop myself."

"Its okay Ichigo."

"Then Aizen had Hyorinmaru. And he– Oh Toshiro..."

They looked at it other sadly for a moment before Ichigo continued. "But the device, it was destroyed wasn't it?"

"Yes, it was."

"So..."

"It was not enough to end his hold over them. The only way to do it is to kill Aizen himself."

"What about the Hogyoku?"

"Aizen and the Hogyoku, they are one in the same now."

"How do you know?"

"He held my soul in the palm of his hand and ripped it apart. I know."

Ichigo just nodded back, a silent apology in his eyes.

"What now then?"

"I'm sorry Ichigo, that, I don't know."

"You don't know? I thought you said he as coming! We have to be ready."

"What am I supposed to do now?" Toshiro rose in anger and raised his empty hands to the air. "Look at us! My zampakuto is gone! You are now the only real soul reaper left and you look like you might drop dead at any minute!"

Ichigo's eyes narrowed and before Toshiro could get to him he pulled himself to his feet. He was covered in wounds Aizen had dealt while he was in hollow form and Toshiro was right, he did look like he was about to keel over. But his eyes did not reflect defeat in the pale light that flooded the room. Instead there was raw determination.

"Then heal me."

"Ichigo, I–"

"Shut up Toshiro. You made your choice to trust in me a long time ago. You never said anything, but I know what you did when you saved me from Aizen the first time. You gave up the chance to finish the incantation and teleport back with the zampakutos to save me. So I'm telling you now, trust that decision, trust me, and heal me."

"And how am I supposed to do that?"

"The same way you did everything else without Hyorinmaru."

"No, that was different, he still existed, we were just separated. Now he is just gone."

"How Toshiro? You told me that a zampakuto is the manifestation of the soul. You're still alive aren't you?"

Toshiro nodded mechanically, the dream echoing through his head.

_Who am I? _The dragon had demanded.

_Me._

"If you are still here, then how could a part of you have died? Hyorinmaru will never be gone as long as you are alive. Come on, there's some place I need to take you."

Captain Hitsugaya watched him stagger to the door and after a few more moments of deliberation, he followed.

It wasn't very far, they crossed the road and took the same path Ichigo took to school every day. But they stopped when the road wound downward and they could hear the rush of the river. Ichigo left the sidewalk and lead them over the small bank to reveal the ebony water sparkling in the now full moon light.

"This is where my mother died." Ichigo said as he came to a halt just at the edge of the water. "For a long time it has been a reminder of my pain. But it has also been a place where I came to remember her when I was little. When I became a soul reaper and found out the truth about her death, I have been able to put some of that pain to rest, but this is still the place I feel the strongest connection to her. This place helps me, when I need to think, when I need to be strong. I know it isn't the same for you, but your power is water, and I thought–"

"Ichigo." but the white haired soul reaper said nothing more. He walked to the water's edge and watched their reflections in the water. "Do you believe that there is something more out there? Something greater than us?"

"What do you mean?"

"Come here." Toshiro waded out into the water until it was up to his waste. His torn robes floated around him. Ichigo stepped out to meet him but as he got closer he saw something glint in Toshiro's face, here and there were small points of silver light. When he was standing before him, Ichigo raised one hand to his small face, careful not to touch the rough scar, but lightly touching one of the points of light.

"What is that?"

"That is something greater than us, Ichigo, than Aizen. It was when you were explaining why you brought me here that I understood. You're right, Hyorinmaru is always with me."

He stretched out his left arm and showed even more silver light, dotted in greater concentration, embedded deep in the flesh.

"Is that..."

"Shards of Hyorinmaru."

Ichigo saw for an instant a blurred memory of the explosion of the sword and the thousands of tiny shards that had spayed the room like shrapnel.

"Toshiro..."

"Until just now, I couldn't feel him. The shock of his destruction kept me from realizing." He stared a little longer at the shards before he met Ichigo's eyes. "Kneel."

Ichigo knelt in the water. It was freezing out, the first frost had fallen the night before but here he was in the river with the white haired child above him, his hands cupped above the orange locks with silver water inside them. It was now the height of the night, the moon was full and just around them the rippling water reflected back the white light like some sort of beacon in the darkness. Ichigo jumped slightly when the water splashed down on him. But he could feel it at once. The three long slashes on his chest, the bruises on his throat, the broken ribs, the countless scrapes and cuts– everything Aizen had inflicted on him melted away.

He didn't know how long he was in the river. At some point he became aware that Toshiro was whispering the healing kido over and over just under his breath. But no matter how much power it took, the water around him seemed willing to lend its strength to the master of the element. Finally it was done, Ichigo rose, soaked but renewed, his muscles moved smoothly, as painless as if Orihime had done it herself.

"There is one last thing." Toshiro said, his eyes falling to the hilt that poked over Ichigo's shoulder.

"Zangetsu?"

"You said this was a place where you came to think. I don't believe Aizen succeeded in brainwashing your zampakuto, but something happened. You will need all his strength to defeat Aizen."

Ichigo nodded and waded to shore. He forgot the cold as he sat on the shimmering grass and watched the boy in the water. It was time for him to take care of his own wounds.

Ichigo shut his eyes and gripped the bare blade of his zampakuto, seeking out the form of his soul. But he barely found the connection before his soul began to scream.

"MASTER!"

"Zangetsu?"

"They're coming!"

* * *

Rangiku opened her eyes. She remembered vaguely a brief struggled with Byakuya and Renji but she's been injured severely, actually, she'd thought it had been fatal. But here she woke, feeling no pain and cradled in someone's arms. They were moving quickly though space, she only saw black and it took her time to realize it was the passageway between their world and the world of the living. She could see others but not their faces, except Renji and Byakuya who were close. She stiffened slightly.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you." The voice made her breath stop. She lifted her head from the shoulder it had been pressed against and looked up into the pale smiling face of her childhood friend and mortal enemy.

"Gin...?"

"Shhh. I was hopin' you'd be awake for this. You waking up was an accident, I knew because Lord Aizen said he would let me know when he got around ta yours. Byakuya nearly had ya done in 'fore I stopped him."

Rangiku raised a trembling hand to her abdomen. It was fine, but she had memories of agonizing pain there.

"S'okay now, Rangiku, I got y'all patched up."

"What's happening?" She whispered, unable to stop the trembling of her voice. She told herself it was because she was weak and still recovering, not because she was afraid.

"You're captain stirred up quite a bit of trouble. We're going to meet Aizen and finally put an end to him. And while we're there, we'll pick up the zampakutos he stole from us."

"_Our_ zampakutos?"

"Yes. But yours will have to go back to Heuco Mundo I'm afraid, Haineko isn't done yet."

"Gin, why are you doing this?"

She tried to look up into his eyes but he thrust out his chin and pulled her tighter to him. She didn't dare move as they came to the lighted end of the tunnel, the doors opened, moonlight flooded in.


	19. Chapter 19

Ichigo was on his feet calling Hitsugaya's name when two gates opened side by side in the sky. One was the Senkeimon, opening in those familiar sliding doors of ancient design. And the other was the dark cracks they had been expecting all night. From each came a terrible enemy. Aizen stepped out of the Garganta, alone, completely healed from his battle with Ichigo. And from the other...

"No..." Ichigo just heard the whisper of despair from the river. Hitsugaya's eyes were fixed on the second white figure who emerged holing Rangiku in his arms. And coming out behind him to flank him were Renji and Byakuya. This was terrible enough, but even more followed. Urahara, Soifon, Shunsiu, Ukitake, Hisagi, Ikkaku and, to Ichigo's great dismay, Rukia.

"I would have liked to have my full fleet but you interrupted my plans. Still, I thought this would be a good test run for them." Aizen smiled down at the two outnumbered soul reapers. "Have fun."

"Wait!" Toshiro called. "Where do you think you are going?"

"To get what you stole from me, of course." Aizen disappeared. Ichigo swore behind him.

"Dammit!" But he couldn't think about the situation for very long before he was dodging an attack. His old master fell to earth beside him.

"Urahara, snap out of it old man!" Ichigo dodged another kido and sent a half-hearted attack back his way.

"You can do better than that Ichigo. Don't forget, we've fought each other plenty of times before."

"You remember?"

"Of course I do."

"Then why...?"

"I do what my master tells me." The voice was dead, nothing like Kisuke Urahara. Ichigo's blood boiled but before he could react he felt a numbness between his shoulder blades and realized he'd been struck by a binding spell. When he fell he saw it was Rukia. He locked eyes with her but hers were unfocussed, unseeing.

He had broken free of this spell before, the first time he'd met her. Now, with his increased spiritual pressure, he broke it with ease. Still, the moment had given the others time to converge on him. Renji came at him, wielding a sword, but not his. Ikaku likewise had a staff with a blade at the end. Ichigo had only a second to realize their strength was never kido and without their zampakuto's they would have to use substitute weapons. Dangerous, but not enough to stop him.

He did his best to dodge kidos and weapons but he could never bring himself to really hit them with all he had. Renji and Ikkaku were one thing, but Rukia...

He felt a whack to the back of his skull and stumbled away from Ikkaku's second strike. He grunted in frustration then sighed and raised his sword. Hell, he knew the two could take it.

"Ikkaku, Renji, I'm sorry," He let fly a blast from Zangetsu.

His sword was his again, all damage from Aizen erased, and the controlled wave of energy knocked his friends back, wounding but not killing. When he turned however he found himself face to face with the shop keeper and couldn't dodge the hado that was aimed directly at his heart.

* * *

Toshiro stared up at Ichimaru for a long second. Ragiku was struggling in his arms, she could just barely see her captain and, only able to partially heal his wounds he still looked terrible and she knew she needed to help him. But then there was a hand on her head, a whispered incantation and she went limp in her captor's arms.

"You bastard Gin! You give her to me now!"

"Oh no! I've earned her. She's my reward for all of my loyalty to Aizen. Now, I think you should be less concerned about me, and more about your friends." He didn't have another second to spare on Gin as Soifon came crashing into him in the water. They were plunged beneath the surface and she held him there, her mouth splitting in a wicked smile. She was going to die just to kill him.

It didn't take him long to overpower her. This was his element, after all. The water around him became his weapon. He used it to push her back and then surfaced. She came gasping up next to him and tried again to attack but one huge wave carried her to shore. Ukitake and Shunsui shot attacks at him but he blocked, raising the water around him with simple motions of his palms. It was different from any form he had used to fight before but it felt natural.

Byakuya joined the fight. Three kido masters was not an easy fight but Toshiro had the advantage. They realized their mistake, but they could not get him away from the water now.

"How?" Byakuya asked finally, when there was a break in the spell casting. "You are like us, you have no zampakuto."

"That is where you are wrong." He sent a tentacle of water toward his colleague and it wrapped around his ankle. He knew what he had to do. In order to get out of here he had to stop them, but to freeze him might mean killing him. The only way to be sure would be to trap them.

He hesitated a second too long. He had mistakenly thought Soifon out of the fight and when she sent a spell his way and it struck him in the back his hold on Byakuya dropped and all three men converged on him.

He was under water again. They had his arms and legs pinned, a hand over his mouth to prevent any release of his power. He had not had much of a breath and he quickly felt the panic welling up in his chest, the desperate need for air.

And they too would die, three soul reaper captains, his friends. He flailed in their grip but together their strength was far greater than his. Toshiro searched their faces for some sign that they might snap out of it but they were all emotionless. He stared up at the three, their hair spreading around them, white robes billowing in the current and cold light of the moon pouring down through the water.

He knew he could save himself. He knew that even if he couldn't move, even if her couldn't speak, the sheer power of his spiritual pressure was enough to freeze the water around him, but they would almost certainly die.

There was, however, one other thing he could do.

Normally, the strength it would take to do a kido as powerful as this one with no incantation would have depleted him of all strength. But here, surrounded by the source of his power, he was able to run though the forbidden chant in his head and execute it with almost no loss of energy. By the time he had gone through the entire chant the others were as close to death as he.

Watching from above, Gin smiled, knowing the these were Hitsugaya's final moments. But then there was a flash of light underneath the surface of the water, a bubble of energy split the surface and left a gaping hole in the river. The water rushed into the spot, filling the void where the four soul reapers had vanished. They reappeared a second later in a crash of water on the bank. Coughing once or twice before passing out. Only one among remained conscious.

Toshiro gasped in the cold night air. He felt his clothes stiffening in the cold and realized the temperature had dropped several degrees. There was no doubt it was his own spiritual pressure that had done that. He looked at his friends, unconscious but alive. He'd saved them. Soifon stood watching him for a second before launching into him again but a cold voice stopped her.

"Wait!"

It was Ichimaru. He handed Rangiku to Hisagi who had remained rooted at his side the entire time as if he'd known the master would join the fight eventually.

Gin descended to earth landing in front of Toshiro. He was still catching his breath and looked up at Ichimaru through heavy lidded eyes.

"You continue to amuse me Toshiro. There has always been something about ya. You were never really s'posed to be a major player in all our plans but ya were. Aizen was your friend, the captain of the girl who's practically your sister. And your lieutenant has loved me for years. So I s'pose, we shoulda seen that you'd cause some trouble, but never this much. How interesting. So tell me," he dashed forward and grabbed Toshiro by the front of his robes. "Who were ya jealous of more? Aizen for holdin' Momo's affections or me for havin' Rangiku's?"

"I was never jealous, Gin. But I always knew _you_ would do this to Rangiku. I always knew you would break her heart. Why do you think I always hated you, even when we were colleagues?"

"Hmmm. I thought ya'd pick Momo." Gin smiled. "But that just makes havin' Ragiku to myself all the sweeter."

"I didn't pick anyone, but you wouldn't understand what it is to have love for people, friendships, relationships. You don't know love, all you know is obsession."

"Maybe. But tell me, what difference does it make, if you're dead. Shoot to death Shinso."

The blade slid through Hitsuagaya like he was nothing more than butter. It ran smoothly though his flesh, his muscles and organs and through his back and into the ground. His face set in a grimace that was quickly highlighted by deep red blood that shone nearly black under the moon.

"Sorry lil' shiro, but you were just too much trouble."

Toshiro whispered something the other couldn't hear. He leaned closer with his wicked grin.

"What was that?"

"Ban-KAI!" Ichimaru didn't have time to move, no time to react and to figure out what was happening. He was struck first by the ice wings and fell back, his sword remaining inside the transformed Toshiro. He rolled through the air, stunned by the blow and then the tail struck. At first he just thought he'd been knocked to the ground but then the crackling sound reached his ears and he realized he could no longer feel his legs. Looking backward he saw the ice building up his body. He tried to jerk away but it had already reached his hips. He looked frantically around for help. Soifon was still frozen, awaiting orders, Hisagi had Rangiku in the sky and everyone else was engaged with Ichigo. The last words that escaped his lips before the ice covered them was _Aizen._

The sword retracted to its normal length but remained inside Toshiro. Soifon was watching him carefully, her eyes constantly shifting back to the frozen corpse of Ichimaru and then back to her comrades half drowned and unconscious. She seemed to be strategizing, realizing that there was no way she could win this on her own. Just as she was looking to the other battle that was happening to see if there was a source of help there, an explosion of yellow light made both her and Toshiro stagger. It had been a powerful hado, but it had met something else just as powerful, and, feeling the ripple of dark spiritual pressure, Toshiro knew just what it was. A few seconds later the body of Urahara Kisuke came hurtling through the sky. He landed before Soifon in a smoldering heap, just barely breathing.

Her eyes narrowed and suddenly she was racing past Hitsugaya to this new threat to her master. But just seconds later she too was hurling through the air. Toshiro just barely noticed in time Hisagi vanish with his captive, no doubt returning to the master to warn him.

There was now just one person that stood a chance against the hollowfied Ichigo, and that was why she had been chosen by Aizen. Toshiro carefully made his way further up the bank and when he crested the small ridge he could see the two facing off. Ichigo towered above the tiny woman, but did not strike. Carefully, she stretched out a hand and touched his arm.

"Ichigo, its me," she whispered. "Please, your hollow is winning, please change back before you hurt more people you love."

"Ichigo no!" Toshiro called out and began moving faster, steadying the blade in his abdomen with one hand as he ran. Rukia whirled on him in anger, blasting a kido at him. He had to jump out of the way and the movement caused him too much pain to strike back. As he gasped for breath she turned back to Ichigo.

"Please, Ichigo, I love you." Her hand now reached to stroke the masked face. Ichigo had more control over this form, but it was causing him confusion. It was as if he was acting on memories and instincts, able to identify Rukia only as someone he loved and not realize that, in this situation, she was acting for the enemy.

"Rukia..." he moaned the name as he grasped the hand in his giant, clawed one. The particles of the mask began to disintegrate and soon he was the human soul reaper once more. Rukia smiled at him, lightly touching the open wound on his chest.

"You're hurt." She said sadly. Ichigo was still affected by the transformation, his head not clear. He allowed himself to sink into her embrace. She reached up to his cheek, cupped it in her hand and guided his mouth towards hers.

When Toshiro finally straightened again his eyes fell on the two locked in a long, very passionate kiss. The scene gave him pause for a moment, this was so wrong. Aizen was messing with them both, hearts and mind. The rage boiled up inside him and just as he saw Rukia's hand slide over Ichigo's heart, knowing she had him weak enough and close enough for a fatal blow, he raised a hand. But before he could cast his spell, Ichigo pulled out of the kiss and whispered,

"Bakudo 63!" the gold chains wrapped themselves around Rukia, her own Hado never released and she fell to the ground. Ichigo stood silently over her as she struggled uselessly at his feet.

Aizen had failed to kill him, but he had succeeded in unsettling the boy. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and covered his eyes for a moment before standing up straight and swallowing the emotions that were threatening to burst out of him. His eyes eventually fell to the captain and he was at his side in an instant.

"Need a hand?" he said grimly, already reaching for the hilt of Shinso.

"Please."

Ichigo didn't hesitate, they both knew they couldn't waste one more second. Ichigo pulled the blade cleanly from Hitsugaya, steadying him in the after math. He quickly pulled Renji's bandana off his forehead and used it to wrap it tightly around the little captain's stomach.

"I'll be fine, Ichigo, it was a clean cut. You and I have both had worse." Ichigo nodded, it was a nasty wound, but at this stage, it would take a lot more to stop them. He glanced once at the frozen body of Ichimaru before standing up and preparing to take off.

"You still got your ear bud?"

It was crusted with blood, dirt and sweat and had been submerged in freezing water, but it was still there, tucked deep in his ear.

"Yeah, but I don't know if it will work."

"Well, we're about to find out."


	20. Chapter 20

Uryu and Chad stood in the street outside Orihime's apartment. The two shop children stood tensed before them.

"Mr. Kisuke." Ururu whimpered. Moments ago the air had filled with the spiritual pressure of at least half a dozen soul reapers and Aizen. Uryu had been trying to distinguish them but they were skewed by a dark power, all but Ichigo, Toshiro and one other– Rangiku Matsumoto. The shop children however, were so in tune with their protector that even masked by Aizen's brainwashing it was still clear to them.

"Don't worry, Toshiro and Ichigo will help him, I'm sure of it." Uryu said and Chad put a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder. Uryu turned to Chad and said in lower tones, "Lieutenant Matusmoto is with them, but her spiritual pressure is unchanged."

"Rangiku..." the teen remembered her well, she had fought with him, Ururu and Noba against a bount and he had become fond of her, in her own quiet way. "Her Zampakuto is Haineko."

"Yes, does it matter?"

"Toshiro muttered that name in his sleep." Uryu's glasses flashed as he locked eyes with Chad.

"What does that mean?"

"I don't know." the giant responded and both their eyes returned to the direction of the river. They felt Aizen break away and soon there were flashes of energy lighting up the atmosphere: kido.

"We have to help them!" Jinta cried but before he could jump away Uryu caught him.

"No. Aizen went toward the shop. That is where Ichigo and Toshiro will go when they're done and we will have to be ready to help them. We have to spread out and cover the whole area. Everything depends on us being able to see him."

"Right, I know the best places to spy on the shop." Jinta said. The others nodded and followed him off into the night.

* * *

Orihime picked up another blade. She could hardly bear the weight of the steel she was so exhausted from healing zampakutos. This one, however, felt different. It was covered in a dark spiritual pressure, almost tangible it was so thick. It must have been a brainwashed soul reaper. She inspected the blade and hilt, trying to figure out who it belonged to. Then with a start she recognized it. It was slender and thin, beautiful really but the white light that normally shone from it was clouded over by the evil spirit. That was why she hadn't recognized Sode no Shirayuki.

"Oh Rukia." She lay her trembling hands on the blade, determined to heal this last one before resting but something rocked the very ground beneath them. She looked up in alarm to Tessai who was deeply concentrated on maintaining his barrier. The only thing he said was,

"He's here."

* * *

Ichigo and Toshiro sped through the night as fast as they could. Ichigo couldn't stop thinking about Orihime trapped in that basement. If Aizen broke the barrier...he couldn't let his thoughts stray there.

Toshiro meanwhile, couldn't help but wonder what Aizen would do with Rangiku now that Ichimaru was dead.

They slowed their pace when they neared the shop. There was a crackling noise in Toshiro's ear and when he looked to Ichigo he saw he heard it too.

"Ichigo, Toshiro, can you hear me?" It was the even tones of the Quincy.

"We're here, Uryu." Ichigo answered when he got the nod that Toshiro heard too.

"Aizen is at the shop already. He's just about through the barrier."

"Okay, we're going."

"Ichigo."

"Yeah?"

"Good luck."

They sped forward once more and just as they arrived the building burst into nothing more than cinders and charred splinters.

"No!" Ichigo screamed. The basement below was completely exposed. Huge sections of the ceiling caved in.

"Ichigo be careful." Toshiro caught his wrist and they moved forward together.

"He's still outside." Uryu's voice came again. "There, hovering." They didn't need the intel, Aizen took no measures to hide his spiritual pressure. However, anything could be a trick, they still needed the human eyes.

"Aizen!" Toshiro screamed through the night and he jumped up into the air to meet his enemy but he couldn't help his eyes roaming in search of his lieutenant.

"Hitsugaya!" Aizen seemed to have lost all patience for Toshiro's continual ability to survive.

"Ichimaru is dead."

"By your hands, I know. Hisagi told me."

Toshiro shifted waiting for more. "You're wondering where your lieutenant is? Well, you killed mine, so I think it only fair I kill yours."

He snapped his fingers and Hisagi appeared, Rangiku restrained. She struggled in his grip but was caught roughly by Aizen. He held her around the neck, forcing her head back against him and putting her off balance with her hands bound behind her.

"Captain..." She breathed.

"Matsumoto, stay calm."

"Don't listen to him, Rangiku. He's lying, he knows he's going to watch you die right here. It's a pity though," his eyes wandered down her throat, "I understand why Gin was so obsessed with you."

"You bastard." Hitsugaya growled and felt frost tingling at the ends of his fingers. "Bankai!" the ice body built around him but Aizen was already drawing his sword. He couldn't wait for the transformation to complete. All he really needed was the claws that hooked over his own hands anyway. Toshiro shot forward even as the wings were unfurling, the tail growing, his hand aimed at Aizen's heart.

"Its her!" he heard the frantic scream through the radio. "Aizen reversed his position with Rangiku, you're going to stab her! Aim for the right, the right!"

Uryu's screams continued but for him to aim for the right would be to plunge his hand through Rangiku's chest, according to his eyes. Uryu's screams became chorused by the others, he had to trust them, more than his own eyes, so he shut them, closed out the image of his lieutenant, his friend, and aimed for the right.

The claw and his hand sunk deep into a body, became surrounded by warmth that trailed up his arm, red, sticky. For a split second he saw the shocked eye of Rangiku before they transformed back into Aizen.

"How did you..."

"Power, Aizen, power you will never know." He made to pulled his hand out but it stuck in the monster's body. His bankai shivered and faded. Something brushed against his fingers trapped inside Aizen, something smooth and hard.

"That would be the hogyoku." Aizen's smile returned. "Whatever power you're talking about, it doesn't matter. Good bye, Toshiro."

"No!" Rangiku had been dropped by Aizen in the initial attack and now grabbed her captain's arm frantically trying to break him free. He felt the power of the hogyoku spreading through his fingertips. It was dark; twisted that way by Aizen. And now it was inside him, working its way up his fingertips, and into his hand.

When it struck the first shard of Hyorinmaru he knew he was in serious trouble. The mind washing would be almost instantaneous.

"Run, Rangiku..." he managed to squeeze out but she shook her head stubbornly. "Please..."

"Captain, fight it!"

The sudden rush of dark energy had set Hitsugaya into a panic, he had failed to notice the opportunity. His thoughts were skewed, he could hear Hyorinmaru crying out against the darkness, but Rangiku was right, not only did he have to fight, but this was the best chance to crush Aizen's power.

"Hyorinmaru, stay with me...please!" Instead of trying to pull his hand away, he reached deeper until his fist closed around the hogyoku completely.

Toshiro had no idea what was happening in the eyes of all those watching, he was experiencing an intense battle, fought deep on the spiritual level. Ice met shadow and blazing energy, the mixture of Aizen's spirit with the golden light of the hogyoku. Toshiro used everything he had, all his and hyorinmaru's power, trying to freeze the hogyoku until it could be crushed by his hand, or, at least, trying to freeze the very blood in Aizen's veins. It was hard for Hitsugaya to tell what was happening in Aizen's body since he was preoccupied with his own. Part of his mind remained concentrated on pouring his spirit into Aizen, but the rest was fighting off the suffocating darkness, struggling with everything to hang on to himself and not get lost in Aizen's illusions, not to become one of his ranks.

"Rangiku move!" the voice thundered below, Toshiro couldn't even look but his lieutenant obeyed. Ichigo soared threw the air, already in bankai, Zangetsu before him.

"Keep going straight." the voice in his ear said. To him, the air above was empty, Aizen, Rangiku, Toshiro were all invisible. But he had to trust his friends.

Ichigo braced for the impact but it never came.

"What happened?" he asked before he remembered he could only hear the others and not speak to them.

"Aizen moved." Chad said all the same. "He saw you coming."

"There he is!" It was Jinta. "Behind you, look out!"

He looked but saw nothing.

"Where?" He raised his sword.

"No!" it was Uryu now. "He's coming at an angle, look down!"

"I can't see anything." Suddenly he felt his side rip open, he gasped in shock and spun threw the air. He couldn't make out the frantic screams in his ear but he knew Aizen was coming again.

Then Zangetsu was moving. He felt warmth against his hands and something guiding them in position. For few seconds longer he was blind to the other soul reapers but when Aizen's blade struck his he suddenly saw Rangiku at his side, her hands around his to point Zangetsu in the right direction, and Toshiro and Aizen locked in an awful struggle. Though still fighting him, Aizen's face was creased in unmasked pain, his brow covered in sweat, and Toshiro was biting back a scream, not even able to acknowledge Ichigo.

"Ichigo, He's right there, Matsumoto is with you." He nodded. "You see them?" another nod. "And Toshiro?" Nod again. "He can't win without you."

"I know. Rangiku." She let go of Zangetsu and began a hado chant. Ichigo swung his blade, building strength.

"Hado 33!"

"Getsuga–"

Aizen gasped as cold pained crept around his wound. He had no other choice: "Bankai!"

The three were hurtling through the air before they knew what happened, even Hisagi had been blown away. Toshiro fell uncontrolled, the dark energy had hit him full force and his arm burned where the hogyuko touched him. Rangiku managed to get one arm around him as they plummeted toward the ruined shop. Ichigo barely clung to consciousness but the sheer power of Aizen's spiritual power released like this was so oppressive he felt his own powers shrivel in comparison.

Ichigo hit first, a cloud of dust rising in his wake. He'd just barely been able to slow himself down. Rangiku managed to protect her captain but took a hard hit herself when the ground rose up to meet them.

They blinked in the sudden light, realizing they were in what was left of the training basement.

"Ichigo!" Orihime screamed and ran toward them.

"Orihime." She pulled him to his feet and reached out to heal him.

"No time."

"But–"

"He's coming." Ichigo pulled away and made to jump back into the air but stopped himself and looked at Rangiku and the captain. He was barely conscious. "Look after him, please."

She didn't have time to speak before the teen disappeared through the ceiling.

"Rangiku..." Orhime just noticed her and again, before Rangiku could respond the teen was running away from her. But she returned a few moments later with a sword in her hands.

"Haineko!" Rangiku took it carefully from Orihime, looking it over for a moment before standing.

"Please, help my captain."

"Rangiku, Ichigo said–"

"I cannot let Ichigo fight alone."

"Rangiku..." Toshiro blinked up at her.

"I'll see you up there, captain." And she too, disappeared.

Orihime began healing Toshiro at once. There were layers of dark energy around his hand but it was something else that stopped her.

"Hyorinmaru?" Toshiro rose his head slightly. "Captain, is Hyorinmaru–"

"These shards are all that's left."

"Hmmm." She refocused her energy. "I reject!" Toshiro felt the shards rip from him, through the skin mended in an instant. The silver pieces grouped together within the golden sphere and as his own strength returned the blade began to take shape. There wasn't much left, but it was enough.

"Concentrate on him." Orihime urged. "I need your help."

It was easy for Toshiro. He would never forget one milimetre of that blade. He watched it reform before him, becoming whole, becoming his Hyorinmaru once more.

When the work was finished he reached out at took it in silence, running a finger along the smooth untouched surface, then his eyes darted up to Orihime's and they revealed deep gratitude.

"Thank you, Orihime."

"Now for the rest of those wounds." she raised her hands but he stood up. His arm had been partially healed, his jaw was sore but no longer broken, and his stomach wound was half closed over but with Hyorinmaru back in his hands it felt like he had been restored to full health. He stared up at the black sky and pinpointed his enemy.


	21. Chapter 21

"Ichigo, he's coming!" Chad's voice sounded in Ichigo's ear as he emerged from the basement. The teen soul reaper was going at full speed, not because Aizen was rushing toward his friends, the man was in fact standing perfectly still in mid air, but because, deep down, Ichigo was afraid: Aizen had released his bankai, and whatever unspeakable evil that might be, he needed to face it now, before he had time to think about all that could imply.

"So eager, young Kurosaki." Aizen leered at him, never moving even as Ichigo sped toward him. He summoned the hollow mask and struck. He hit empty air.

"Ichigo, behind–" There was no pain, no sword plunging into him like he expected, just a hand on his shoulder.

"Those eyes haven't seen my power, they are immune, but you can't hold onto that mask for very long." And even as he spoke it evaporated. "No, there is only one way you can hold onto those eyes. Tell me, is it worth it to turn into a monster?"

"If it means defeating you, of course."

"And you really believe that is possible?"

Ichigo was already trembling in the shroud of Aizen's power. The hand on his shoulder tightened a little.

"It has to be." Ichigo said as steadily as possible.

"Oh Ichigo, you know so little about me and yet, we aren't all that different. Take our bankais for example, as you can see, to the naked eye nothing about me has changed, but, just like yours, rather than a variation on my powers..." Ichigo felt the darkness around him increase ten fold, he felt the breath sucked out of him. The hand on his shoulder was the only thing keeping him upright. "...mine is a concentration of that power."

He leaned in close and his breath tickled Ichigo's ear. "And this, my boy, is just a fraction of my power. With my bankai, I could cover the whole of your world with it. Everyone lost in illusions. I could make them all jump into the sea if I wanted. So tell me, Ichigo Kuosaki, just how exactly do you plan to fight that?"

Aizen's hand lifted from his shoulder and reached to his neck. His fingers trailed up to his ear and plucked the bud out. "Human technology is so fascinating." He said as he flicked it back to earth. Then he grabbed Ichigo once more and spun him around as he waved his sword through the air. There were a couple of startled noises then four figures emerged from their hiding places: Uryu, Chad, Jinta and Ururu. "For example..."

"No wait!"

Aizen just smiled and Ichigo watched as Uryu lifted his hands to form the bow, his eyes dead, no emotion. He pointed it at Chad who made no move to dodge. "Don't!" the blue arrow went straight into the teen's chest and he fell silently. Next Uryu pointed to Jinta and Ururu. "NO!" Ichigo was screaming but Aizen had him, just one arm, now over his shoulders, pulling him close like they were old friends, but so much power swirling around them that Ichigo could not move. Uryu pulled back the bowstring and aimed at Ururu's solemn face.

A yellow light engulfed the Quincy. Ichigo hadn't heard a chant, he hadn't seen the old master but Tessai was there, and next to him was Rangiku, her sword held before her boldly.

Uyru snapped out of the stunning spell and when he did he seemed to be out of his trance. Ichigo couldn't hear the words but some agreement was made and Tessai disappeared with the two children and Chad. Uryu took his position beside Ragniku.

"You know they can never run far enough. I could destroy them now if I wanted, but these two will do." Aizen said. The soul reaper in his arms was now trembling uncontrollably. Aizen was slowly releasing more and more power so that now the boy had sunk completely against the man he hated most in the world. Was this how he would die, in the arms of his enemy, shaking like a scared child?

"Zangetsu, please..." He whispered in his mind when Aizen's hand slipped under his armpit to keep him on his feet.

But Zangetsu was just as much affected. There was only one being left that could help him.

"Will you let it out Ichigo? Will you let lose the hollow inside you?" Ichigo struggled weakly against Aizen but even though the man was taunting him, he knew it was the only choice. Still, even that might not be enough. Fortunately, Ichigo Kurosaki did not stand alone.

"Roar, Haineko!"

The whispers of tiny blades swarmed them, blinding them for an instant. A blue arrow shot through the middle of cloud, aimed straight at Aizen's chest.

Before the taunt could leave Aizen's mouth as the arrow dissipated harmlessly in the field of his power, they were struck from behind. The blow did no damage to Aizen of course, but Rangiku had managed to slam into Ichigo, trying to pull him away. However, this close the dark energy, she became just as weighed down by it as Ichigo.

"Nice try, Rangiku."

She had her hand around Ichigo's but Aizen swung through the swarm of Haineko and struck her. They followed after her as she fell, but not far, into the Quincy's arms. Beads of sweat covered him, he was struggling against the raiti even though he was at least a hundred metres below.

"Pathetic." Aizen spat and raised his sword again but Ichigo jerked in his arms and caught his right hand before he could do whatever he'd been planning.

"Impressive Kurosaki." Aizen increased his spirit on the boy and he collapsed completely, though still, Aizen kept him upright. Ichigo's head lolled back against his captor's chest and he saw the smile on his lips and even though the rage burned inside him he could not move.

Below them Rangiku was shaking herself awake. Her right arm was bleeding profusely, but she ordered Uryu to set her down.

"Rangiku, just wait."

"No, this is too important."

"No, I mean it, just wait." She followed his gaze downward and her heart skipped a beat. Her captain was coming.

Captain Hitsugaya's robes hung off him in rags, they were stained with dirt and blood, some wet, some crusted. His once flawless features were marred by the long scar that ran through his eye and his normally pure white and spiky hair hung flat and grey with the dust of the broken training ground. But somehow, as he entered into the battle, there was something majestic about him, something bright, something like hope.

He saw Ichigo in Aizen's clutches, he saw his bleeding lieutenant and he felt the cool power of his bankai as it enveloped him.

Before he could reach the pair in the sky, Aizen let go of the boy in his arms drove his sword through his shoulder. Toshiro screamed in rage but he also knew it was not lethal, he knew what Aizen was doing.

"I just lost my second in command." Aizen said calmly as Ichigo hung off the end of his blade. "How would you like the job?" that crushing pressure combined with the power of the hogyoku spread through the blade straight into Ichigo's body. "Sorry, but we'll have to do this the quick way."

Ichigo was not aware of his own screams. He was not aware of anything but the darkness that was filling him, killing who he was, but leaving the very darkest part of him.

Toshiro raced forward but hesitated slightly as he got closer, waiting for instructions.

"I can't tell, Aizen's bankai compromised me." Uryu's voice was in his ear. He was right, now there was no one, no one but the hollowfied Ichigo that was, without a doubt, fighting its way out even as Toshiro sped toward the two. Aizen's sword was occupied but a dark point of energy was forming in his hand. He was so fast, Toshiro didn't have time to doge, only deflect the black cero. It was followed by a second that he didn't see coming, the blow sent him spinning back until he was caught but the quick arms of the Quincy.

"Ichigo can't hold on much longer." Uryu's voice echoed in his ear.

"All three of us at once." Raniku said beside them.

Toshiro opened his mouth to protest but Ichigo's screams were too much. "Now!"

The three shot up together. Rangiku and Toshiro moved in practised unison, the captain swinging from the front, Rangiku from behind and Uryu came from the side, trying to reach Ichigo.

Aizen smiled patronizing at them. Just as they closed in he allowed a wave of his spiritual pressure to strike them. Ichigo was the only one who breathed, the pressure inside him relaxing for a split second before resuming. Rangiku and Uryu dropped, the force of the wave pushing them back as well as disrupting their own energy. However, Aizen's smug smile faded when one small hand closed around his collar, frost stiffening the fabric, blade pointed against his throat. It resumed though, when he felt the tip trembling and saw the sweat beading on Toshiro's forehead.

"You should not have been able to get through that. You're powers mus have matured since we were colleagues. But look at you, not enough spiritual pressure to cut me, it was all for naught."

"Not exactly." Toshiro saw a flash of red hair and a second later Aizen's blade was jerked in his hand as the weight at the end of it disappeared. Toshiro had distracted him just long enough for Rangiku to free Ichigo who spun back to earth where he landed in Uryu's arms. However, the inner hollow had already begun to emerge. Ichigo writhed in Uryu's grip, his face half covered in mask but fighting it.

"I don't want..."

"Ichigo, hang on."

"But it's the only way."

"No, Toshiro's got him." But he did not sound convinced.

"Get back Uryu."

"Ichigo, don't."

"I said, GET BACK!"

Ichigo shoved Uryu back and with his hollow strength breaking through the Quincy didn't land until he was several metres away. He immediately began running back but by the time he reached Ichigo, he was the monster again. Yellow pupils shifted in black eyes, assessing the situation. Uryu braced himself but when they fell on him he heard the skewed voice of his friend.

"Uryu."

"Ichigo, you have control?"

The eyes darted back to the sky when they heard a cry from the captain. "Stay back." the beast said as it leapt into the sky.

* * *

_**Two Chapters left! I will be posting one more tonight, hang on!**_


	22. Chapter 22

Toshiro couldn't suppress the cries that escaped him as he focussed everything on keeping a hold of Aizen. He pulled Hyorinmaru back but to Aizen's surprise it was only to sheath him.

"Giving up?"

"No." Now with both hands fisted in Aizen's robes, he thought of nothing but ice, nothing but those nights of his childhood when he'd awoken to sub zero temperatures because he couldn't control the massive ice dragon that was inside of him– that _was _him. He didn't need a bankai, he didn't need a blade, he just needed that power to crush his enemy. Or, at the very least, to slow him down enough for someone else to finish him.

That someone else was rushing up to meet them.

With Toshiro so close and Ichigo's hollow eyes, Aizen's powers were of no use as long as he didn't swing that blade. And somewhere in Ichigo's clouded mind, he knew that, and he raced for the weapon that was filled with so much darkness.

He was too slow.

In the intense battle between her captain and Aizen and Ichigo's violent transformation, Rangiku had been forgotten. But no longer. Just as Aizen was curving his blade through the air it met an unexpected barrier.

Aizen's eyes went wide with rage. "You bitch."

"You bastard." Rangiku smiled back, her arms trembling, but Aizen's power wasn't as oppressive as before, flakes of snow drifted about her as they failed to stick to Aizen. They mixed in the with his darkness, providing a cool breath of air, just enough to sustain her.

Seeing his lieutenant, Toshiro seemed to find even more strength and though most of his spiritual pressure was blown off by Aizen's, now a few tendril of frost seemed to be sticking to him, spreading through the fabric until they stung the skin. Aizen was trying to shake Rangiku off, Ichigo was almost on them, she had to hang on just a little longer,

"Ban-" Toshiro and Aizen's eyes widened simultaneously, "KAI!"

For a moment there was nothing but black, the air was full of millions of bladed beads, more than a hundred times the amount of Haineko's shikai, and they were all swarming, concentrating around Aizen, rushing past Toshiro recklessly, he felt hairline cuts forming along his scalp, she did not have complete control yet. All the same, she seemed to be pointing them straight at Aizen's eyes.

There was little time to think further on what was happening, Ichigo struck them, sending them spinning through the air, first up, then plummeting downward with the added weight. Haineko was gone, their speed too great but Toshiro could see the wounds on Aizen's face and he knew they were succeeding in overcoming that spiritual pressure. Blood seeped out the corners of his eyes, but there was no doubt he could still see as he stopped blow after blow from Ichigo.

Toshiro continued to poor his energy into Aizen but it was becoming increasingly difficult to maintain this level of output and cling to his enemy as they rolled through space. And Aizen knew how to rid himself of the pest easily. He swung at Ichigo, Ichigo swung back, and instead of dodging he dropped his arm and let Zangetsu slice through Toshiro's back. The white haired captain screamed but held on, and Ichigo withdrew.

"You see, I can make you hurt your friends even without illusions. Speaking of..." Rangiku was blazing toward them, the swarm at her back, but as Toshiro turned he saw she was aimed at the wrong person.

"No! Matsumoto over here!" But she was headed straight for Ichigo. He was struggling enough to control his hollow form and when he saw the attack coming it was too much for him to suppress the instinct to counter. The swarm surrounded him and for a moment both were lost in it. Then, just a second or two later, the limp form of Rangiku fell out of the black mist and Hanieko became the blade once more, falling at her master's side. Toshiro screamed his rage as she struck the unforgiving earth.

Aizen ignored him and sped toward Ichigo. The hollowed soul reaper was obviously struggling, he stared at where Rangiku fell, fighting between blood lust and self disgust, his two halves fighting inside. For this reason, he didn't realize until too late this was what Aizen had wanted. Zangetsu met Kyoka Suigetsu only after it was already burried deep in his body, splitting his middle like the very first time the blade had cut him on Sokioku hill.

Aizen could have kept going, Zangetsu was only stopping the end of his blade that was not already deep inside the boy, but he withdrew and instead caught Ichigo's sword hand, forcing the blade between them.

Blood dripped form the Ichigo's hollow mouth, and gushed relentlessly from his stomach but his black and yellow eyes were fixed on his sword.

"You could have been my second, such a waste of power. Goodbye, Zangetsu.

"No!" Toshiro released one hand to grab onto Aizen's arm in an attempt to block his powers but it was not enough. Aizen retracted from the frost the burned into his skin, but it created a mere ripple in the tide of black power that rushed at Zangetsu. The blade snapped, Aizen dropped his prey and Toshiro watched for a second time as a friend fell back to earth.

"Now, to finally get rid of you." Toshiro resecured his grip around Aizen's collard just as Aizen got a hand around his neck. Their eyes were locked, and even though Aizen could see that this boy would never let go, he knew that in a matter of seconds, he would crush the life out of him.

* * *

Tessai called uselessly after the girl who fled to the surface. He could not abandon the barrier over the zampakutos, the only protection left, it seemed, the battle in the sky was clearly turning in Aizen's favour. He watched helplessly as Orhime scrambled up the stairs.

Ichigo had landed very close to Rangiku. She was unconscious but breathing, it looked like she had been kicked or punched with tremendous force but there was nothing immediate that Orihime could do because before her, his body nearly sheered in half, was the boy she loved, the boy she trusted to save them all. He had shrunk back to his human form but remained conscious. Even he could not hold in the sobs in this much agony.

"Please..." he begged but she had already began. Her powers had been exhausted by her efforts to heal the zampakutos, but now, her heart full of anger for Aizen and fear for her friends, there was nothing in this world that would stop her from healing Ichigo Kurosaki.

Organs stitched together, blood refilled closing veins and arteries, and finally muscle and flesh knit back into one. But he was still not whole.

"I'll heal him." Orihime promised but Ichigo could see Aizen's hand on Toshiro's throat, and even here he could feel the massive spiritual pressure.

"No time." he stood.

"But what will you–"

"Take this..." the voice was barely audible but Ichigo turned to see Rangiku on the ground, holding out her zampakuto, handle first. Ichigo took the hilt, words of apology, of protest, or maybe a promise on his lips but she interrupted, just barely clinging to consciousness. "The hogyoku, destroy it."

Ichigo understood. If it was destroyed the soul reapers would be free. If it was destroyed then hopefully, it would take Aizen with it.

He pushed off and flashed through space as fast as if he'd had his vizard mask. But he was fuelled by something more, by that special power Toshiro had come to believe in long ago– the strength given him by his friends.

* * *

Toshiro was slipping, his hands remained firmly attached to Aizen's robes and even now the cold was spreading into his enemy, but his vision was mostly black spots and he kept seeing flashed of the empty room and echoes of that feline voice.

_So do you understand now?_

_What?_

_Why you always dreamt of me._

Something snapped him back and he realized it was the presence of Ichigo.

"Kurosaki..." he squeezed past the pressure on his throat, "the hogyoku..."

"I know." Ichigo was racing aroynd them, looking for his opening, but even as he flashed from point to point, he could never beat Aizen's speed, and could never reach his back.

"You'll have to go through him if you want to hit me." Aizen laughed.

"Do it..." Toshiro whispered desperately.

"I can't."

"Yes you can."

"Toshiro–"

"DO IT!"

Ichigo swallowed and Toshiro gazed triumphantly at Aizen. His zampakuto vibrated against his back, lending him every ounce of strength, the ice dragon would be with his master to the very end. The teal eyes flashed with power, with knowledge that this was truly the end of the man who stared back at him. White light glowed around his body as master and zampakuto together gave everything they had to slow Aizen, if only for one second. The frost that had been spreading became pure ice, shooting up the hand around Toshiro's throat and spreading from the small captain's hold around his neck. And behind them Ichigo Kurosaki was coming, with the borrowed blade in his hands. Aizen tried to move, tried to bring his own sword down or to flash step but that one second of panic, that one second that the ice invaded his muscles and slowed his hand, was enough.

"Here it is, Aizen. Proof, that there is power greater than yours."

Aizen's last sight was the smile on the boy's lips, even as blood spurted out between them. Then the tip of Haineko, reaching through Hitsugaya's body and continuing into Aizen's, split the hogyoku and all that golden energy that had been twisted and contained, ripped free of its cage, destroying the vessel that had once been a soul reaper, once been a captain and mentor, and once been a traitor to all his kind. But now he was nothing, nothing but ash and flakes of ice that drifted in the air around the two soul reapers who had fought for so long, just to reach this moment.

But all joy was lost as Ichigo stared at the end of Haineko's blade, protruding through the small captain's back, through his heart and out the other side, and pure rage and frustration ripped out his throat in one long scream as the small body went limp.

"_So it seems you were right all along, little captain." Toshiro blinked and saw the cat sitting on his chest. He sat up and she slid gently into his lap._

"_Did you know, all this time, that this was how it would end?"_

"_I could only know that if you did._" _Her green eyes flashed mysteriously as they looked up at him_.

"_Haineko..."_

"_You're going to ask who I really am." He raised a hand and stroked the fine fur on the top of her head but he shook his own to say no._

"_Thank you." she purred and pushed into his hand as white light filled the room and teal eyes shut on the empty space for one final time._

_

* * *

_

Kenpachi Zarakai stood with the small girl in his arms. He was surveying the Seireitei from its highest point, Sokioku hill. There were a few others who had awoken, and he had discovered that people in the Rukon District were starting to come around too. It was cold, the clouds hung thick in the air and he expected snow this night. But how? He remembered falling, he remembered dust blowing through the sky, clutching Yachiru next to him then nothing. But that had been at just the end of summer, the first frost was months away, so how could he be here, standing at the brink of winter? What had happened to them?

"Sir!" a soul reaper from another squad, three, he thought, came running up. He had been the first to wake and no other captains had woken with him so all the remaining soul reapers had come to him. He had told them to scout the area, look for enemies, and other people waking, but he had also asked them to do a count. He had already noticed the traces of battle, the destruction of part of squad four and found the frozen bodies of Kurotsuchi and his lieutenant deep in the lab of twelfth division. They may all have been sleeping, but something had been happening, someone had been awake.

"Its like you said," the soul reaper panted. "I counted and you were right, some people are missing. Captains, sir: Captain Kuchki, Captain Hitsugaya, Captain Soifon, Captain Ukitake and Captain Kyoriku. And lieutenants Matsumoto, Hisagi and Abarai as well as Madrame Ikkaku. Also, Rukia Kuchiki is gone."

"Hmm."

"Where do you think they are sir?"

"I don't know. But wherever they are, I bet Ichigo has something to do with it." Zarakai had gotten the reports of the destroyed room in squad four, the clothes that had been found from the world of the living and distinct traces of Ichigo's bankai that had torn through the room. There was no doubt that whatever had happened to them had not happened to Ichigo.

"We can't get back to the world of the living without our zampakutos. There's no way to activate the Senkeimon."

"I know that."

"There was one other thing, sir. Ex-captains Urahara and Yoruichi are here too, but unconscious. Do you think they had something to do with this?"

"No. This has Aizen's stink all over it."

"Aizen?" the soul reaper shrank back involuntarily at the name.

"Don't worry kid, we're still here, and that means Aizen ain't. Someone's been busy while we were out."

"Sir."

"What?"

"Sir, look."

But Zarakai didn't need to look down to know his lieutenant was awake. She'd been stiff against him the entire time he'd held her but now he felt the gentle shift of her weight in his arms. Pink eyes blinked open and a small smile spread over her face.

"Morning Kenny." She yawn and stretched, sitting up. "What happened?" But her question would have to wait. He pulled her close and she hugged back, confused, but happy.

"Yachiru," he said when he finally pulled back, though she was still cradled in his arms, "you alright?"

"Fine!" she jump up onto his shoulder and stared out around the Seireirtei. The sun was setting, glowing orange on the horizon, and it took them a moment to make out a black shape running toward them, another soul reaper. He barely nodded his respects before gasping out his news.

"They're waking up!" he exclaimed.

"Who?"

"Everyone."

Zarakai glanced at his lieutenant then turned to look out at the city, now coloured a blazing orange. Dark shapes were indeed stumbling out of buildings all around and the eleventh division captain couldn't hold back the grin.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, looks like we owe you one, again."

* * *

_**To Be concluded.**_


	23. Chapter 23

Orihime woke in her own bed. It had been a while since this had happened, between running around after hollows, training and staying at the shop with her friends, school and home had been almost completely forgotten. But this morning, when she woke to the automatic alarm that sounded on her clock, she shut it off and almost went straight to her closet to get out her uniform. But her hand stopped when she saw the boy sitting cross legged and back propped against her wall, the broken halves of his sword in his lap. His golden eyes slowly opened and met hers and all her memories of the night before came flooding back. Ichigo rushed to her side when she sat straight up in bed and felt the rush of blood to her head that made everything go black. Her hands shook and she didn't think her legs would support her.

"Orihime, take it easy."

"Ichigo...what happened?"

"You passed out."

"What, why?"

"Trying to save him."

Orihime's heart pounded, she remembered now, the boy on the blade, his torn, bloodied captain's robes fading to plain white as he fell of the end of Haineko. Ichigo had caught him, held him gently in his arms as she lay her hands on the his lifeless body.

"Please..." Ichigo had begged with a trembling voice. The golden light closed around the pale body but she remembered nothing after that.

"Toshiro!" Orhime cried, jumping out of bed. Ichigo caught her as she stumbled but she pushed forward, out the door and into the living room. Bodies lay everywhere. Chad was prostrate on the floor, his chest bound and the shop girl leaning over him, checking his breathing. Hisagi was being tended to by Jinta who roughly bound his wounds from when he'd been thrown back by Aizen's energy. And there were others Orihime hadn't even know where there, Renji, Rukia and several other captains and vice captain were all unconscious, wounds covering all. Tessai and Uryu had their hands full with them. Then her eyes found the one she'd been looking for, cradled in the lap of his seemingly sleeping lieutenant on the couch.

"Captain Hitsugaya!" Rangiku's head shot up. Her face was bruised and white bandages poked through her uniform but her attention was focussed on the small form in her lap. The white robe covered him from the waste down but above that his body was covered in bandages. Someone had taken the time to wash the dirt and blood out of his hair and off his face but his perfect features were still obscured by bruises and the long cut that had never fully healed and ran over his eye. Orihime felt tears prick the corners of her eyes at the sight of him but Rangiku smiled warmly at her.

"Orhime, I'm glad to see you're alright."

"Me? Oh Rangiku?" She threw her arms around the battered lieutenant and sobbed into her shoulder.

"Shhh, Orihime, its over now. And I have to thank you. You saved him."

Orihime pulled back and knelt next to the couch where Rangiku. The lieutenant stroked his hair like a mother would a child.

"I don't remember." Orhime said, wiping away a tear.

"You kept going until you passed out. His heart...Haineko passed right through his heart but you healed it. Thank you." she said again. Orihime carefully reached out and touched his cheek. It was very cold but his chest rose and fell.

"Was it enough?"

"He'll be alright, you just rest."

"But his robes, what happened and where did Hyroinmaru go?"

Ichigo knelt down beside her and stared at the boy for a moment before turning to face her.

"You remember when we went to save Rukia in the soul society?"

"She was wearing white robes."

"That's what happens," Rangiku began, "when a soul reaper loses their powers."

"Loses them?"

"Rukia gave me my powers." Ichigo said touching his own chest where her blade had struck him that night that felt like it was so long ago. "She didn't mean to give them all to me but she did and he robes turned white. But eventually, she got them back."

"And so will my captain, when he's had enough time to heal." Rangiku stopped strokimg the fine white hair and put her hand lightly against her captain's chest.

"Feel this Orihime." Orihime put her hand over Rangiku's. "This is what you gave him." The steady beat of his heart throbbed into their palms.

Ichigo place his hand over the girls' just as the sun crested the far hills through the window and golden light lit up their faces. They all turned to stare into the dawn and Ichigo's hand tightened over theirs,

"And this," he said, his eyes reflecting the glory of the sun, "is what Toshiro gave us."

* * *

It was several days before Toshiro got to see the dawn of a new day for himaself and know that there was no one out there to threaten their tomorrow. He saw the familiar setting of the fourth division around him and with a shock of deja vue, the orange haired boy with a tray of food and a book in his hands. The deja vue ended quickly however, when the shrill voice of his lieutenant struck his ears.

"CAPTAIN!" Arms closed around him and he saw nothing but black fabric that muffled his protests and he weakly pushed back against her. She withdrew finally but the tears in her eyes stopped his reprimands. Ichigo too, was hovering at his side and a moment later Unohana was at the end of his bed.

"Now calm down everyone, Captain Hitsugaya doesn't need you two getting all worked up."

"Sorry Captain Unohana, but I was just so happy." Rangilu half sobbed.

"As you should be."

Toshiro's head swivelled between the people in the room until finally the teal eyes decided to rest on Ichigo and he didn't even have to ask the question.

"Yes, Toshiro, it did work. Aizen is gone."

"Thank you, Ichigo." His voice just barely got past his briused and swollen throat.

Ichigo just nodded. There was so many things he wanted to say, mostly that he was sorry, that it had been one of the worst moments of his life when he'd plunged his sword though his friend's heart, but it could wait. And, after all this time, he knew what the little captain would say anyway.

"Ragiku." Toshiro turned back to his lieutenant and his eyes narrowed in mock anger. "Exactly when were you going to tell me you had learned your bankai?"

Her face flushed red, "Uh, I was going to tell you, but I had only done it a couple of times so I thought I'd wait before I–"

"Matsumoto!"

"Y-yes captain?"

"I'm very proud of you." Her features softened and a teary smile formed on her face.

"Thank you captain."

"Captain Hitsugaya!" A voice boomed through the room and they all looked around to see the Head Captain enter. Unohana made way for him to stand at the head of his bed. "It is good to see you are awake."

"Thank you sir." He noticed the staff back in his captain's hands.

"Yes, many of the zampakutos have been returned to their masters." Yamamoto explained catching his glance. "Orihime Inoue is continuing her work on them. Aizen's spell is broken, but there are still some rifts that need to be mended." Toshiro's mind flashed back to Aizen's hand over Zangetsu and looked back to Ichigo. The teen reached beside the chair he'd been sitting in and showed the flawless blade of his zampakuto to the captain.

"She is good." he said.

"Yes," Ichigo nodded, sheathing his blade, "she is."

The Head Captain watched Toshiro slump back in his pillow and his eye lids droop.

"Time to let Captain Hitsugaya rest. I will get a full report from you when you are well."

"Thank you." Toshiro whispered, his eyes shutting completely. He heard footsteps and thought the head captain was gone but then he felt the wizened hand against his forehead and heard the ancient voice in his ear.

"Be proud Captain Hitsugaya," his voice was just a whisper, no one else could hear. "You chose the right path. You were right, to have faith." Toshiro's eyes shot open but the Head Captain withdrew and left the room without another word. The others watched him with concern as he pushed himself into a sitting position and stared wide eyed at the doorway.

"What is it Captain?" Rangiku placed a hand on his shoulder and he turned to face her. But his eyes fell to her side instead, where Haineko was strapped at her back.

"Can I see her?"

Rangiku followed his gaze and grasped the hilt of her sword. "Of course." she pulled it out and lay in on his lap. He traced the long smooth surface and saw his own eyes reflected back at him but nothing more, no voice, no purring cat. He sighed and lay back.

"Is something wrong?" Rangiku asked, reaching to take her katana back.

"No." Toshiro breathed but something caught his eye as the blade was lifted from his lap. He saw pure white reflected back in the smooth surface. He caught Rangiku's hand and saw that the blade was reflecting the window behind her. Ragiku moved out of his way so he could see.

"It's the first snow, and it came in with a bang. Its been raging like that for hours."

The snow was indeed falling thick and heavy and the wind pushed hard against the window.

"I haven't seen a storm like this in decade." Unohana said but she smiled at the captain as if she already knew what he was thinking.

"Ichigo." Toshiro said, the fatigue leaving him at once.

"Yeah?"

"Give me a hand."

* * *

The others had heard Toshiro was awake and came as quickly as they could manage through the blizzard. Chand and Uryu kept Orihime safe between them, and they ran into Renji and Rukia along the way. When they got to the fourth division, however, they found the patient they were going to see outside, barefoot in the snow with nothing but hospital robes on.

"Toshiro!" Orihime exclaimed but Ichigo, Rangiku and Unohana came to join them.

"Just watch." the healer smiled even though the gale force winds pulled at her robes and hair and stung her face with wet cold snow. But everyone forgot their discomfort when the boy stretched out his hands and the snow swirled around him. More and more of the snow closed around him. The storm seemed to lift away from the others and concentrate around him until he was barely visible.

"Is he...?"

"Just watch."

The storm had become an unnantural mix of water snow and ice all gusting around the frail body but he stood, untouched, in their midst, arms still outstretched. They all squinted to see past the blizzard and they thought they saw a silver glint. Others had gathered and they noticed that the whole Sereietei was bathed in sunlight, the only clouds now hung above the fourth division. Soon there was nothing but a white pillar to be seen. They took a few steps back as the power of the storm increased but not enough. There was a crack of thunder and an explosion of white light. Everyone fell back as piles of snow struck them and half buried them. But when they dusted themselves off and found their feet again, the sun shone through a clear sky and lit up the small figure dressed in black and white, the long silver blade and green hilt resting in his hands, a contented smile on his face. The captain of squad ten had returned, not a scar left on his body, not a tear in his clean uniform.

"Hello again, Hyorinmaru." He whispered to the blade.

"Captain!" Rangiku ran up to him, the others close behind. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, Matsumaoto, I'm fine."

"Glad to see you're back, _Captain_ Hitsugaya." Ichigo said, reaching out a hand.

Toshiro smiled up at him as they clasped hands and shook. "Actually, Ichigo, its Toshiro."

* * *

Toshiro sat back in his office chair and sipped his tea. There was a knock and he told whoever it was to come in. It was Ichigo, Chad, Uryu and Orihime.

"We're heading back soon. Orihime just finished the last Zampakuto." Ichigo explained.

"Yes, Captain's Kurtsuchi's was one of the hardest." she said tiredly.

"I heard you unfroze him and Nemu. Are they alright?" Ichigo inquired of the ice wileder.

"As alright as they ever are. I don't think Kurotsuchi will ever forgive me for wrecking his lab.

"But Nemu was very thankful that you stopped her captain without harming him more than necessary." Rangiku piped up, sitting up from the couch where she'd been napping.

"Urahara also sends his thanks." Uryu added. "Says you should stop by for tea some time."

"Did they rebuild the shop already?"

"Yeah, though the underground training room still needs some work."

"Hmmm, well I'm afraid I won't be making any trips to the world of the living for a while, I still have a lot of work to do here."

"You still working on your report?" Ichigo asked, eyeing the stack of papers on his desk.

"Yes, the Head Captian wants it as detailed as possible but some of what happened over the last couple months is a bit hazy."

"Yeah. A lot happened."

Everyone fell silent until Chad spoke up. "Orihime needs to rest." he put a supportive hand on her shoulder, she did look like she might fall asleep right there.

Toshiro stood up and came over to them.

"Thank you, Orihime." he reached out for her hand but she caught him in a tight embrace and he smiled into her shoulder. When she withdrew he shook everyone's hand and said his thanks. Rangiku walked them outside but Ichigo lingered.

"You know I never got the chance to apologize for stabbing you in the back."

"Hmm, it does sound bad when you put it like that." But his smile turned serious. "But Ichigo, I don't want your apologies. You killed Aizen, you saved us all. Thank you."

Ichigo ignored the thanks. They could go in circles forever thanking each other and blaming themselves, that was one way in which the two were very similar. Instead he sighed deep and stared down at the child captain.

"Its hard to believe its over though. So much time, so much that happened. But I never doubted we could do it."

"That's what makes you so strong Ichigo. Your faith that good will always win."

"Some call it naivete."

"In your case, they would be wrong."

"You didn't always think like that."

"No, you're right."

"What changed?"

Toshiro sighed and regarded him seriously. "Ichigo, we stood alone at the brink of darkness. It was up to us to rebalance the whole universe and defeat the most powerful man in all of existence. I had no choice but to believe that there was something more out there, something that would not allow evil to win. And you were my proof, because no matter what has happened to you, to your friends, that something was always on your side."

"Hmmm." Ichigo said placing a hand on the door knob. "Rebalanced the universe eh? Think I can put that on my resume?"

"Ichigo, I was being serious!"

"I know, Toshiro. Thanks."

Ichigo pulled open the door and walked out. Toshiro watched him go, and sat back at the desk but something nudged its way through the unclosed door and hopped up on his papers. He swallowed the tea in his mouth and stared back at the green eyes of the black cat.

"You can't be here."

He looked around as if the room would suddenly turn into the empty one but it didn't.

He set his cup down and reached out to touch the cat. She pushed her soft head into his hand and he knew she was real.

"This can't be, Haineko. I thought you were just..."

"Haneiko?" A deep voice said and he withdrew his hand with a start. "I'm not Haineko."

The door flew open again and Ichigo ran back in. "Youruichi! They've already got the Senkeimon open, let's go!" The cat jumped off his desk and out the door. Toshiro remained stunned at his desk.

"You okay, Toshiro? You look a little pale."

Toshiro set down his pen, stood up and slid Hyorinmaru over his back.

"You know what Ichigo, I think I will take Urahara up on that tea after all."

The teen looked surprised but smiled and held the door open for the little captain.

"Great." the two hurried off in the direction of the Senkeimon and the door shut on the office but not before a gentle breeze rustled the papers on the desk. One sheet fell to the floor, a large blot of ink just before the last line of the paper where the captain had hesitated for several minutes on what to write. Then, following it in a steady hand was the sentence he'd struggled to write.

_I learned that soul reapers are not proof that there is no God, but proof that there are things greater than us out there. I learned that some things are greater than logic and reason. One of those things is friendship. And one of those things is faith._ _Aizen is dead because he had neither and we had both._

The sentence ended. There were still many details to record, of battles and blood and pain, but what was most important had been said. And for those who'd lived it, that was all that needed saying. Their story was complete.

...

END

* * *

_**Wow, what a ride! I am sad to end it but at the same time it's a relief. I struggled to find the right way to finish this story that has taken up far too much of my time recently, but I wanted to do it justice, so please, let me know what you thought, of the end, of the whole thing, whatever you want to say! I also look forward to completeing the other two stories I have on the go, **_**Ashes to Ashes**_** and the **_**Meaning of a Man _so look for updates on those shortly, if you've been following. But for now, good bye and thank you so much for all those who stuck with me and these awesome characters through this adventure. _**


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